Medical Attention
by jstar1382
Summary: S1 AU Based on a tumblr prompt from anon: Castle's a doctor, a friend of Lanie's. AU Caskett meeting at Lanie's birthday. *Castle Winter Hiatus 2014 Ficathon Entry* Cover art by the awesome (ScribbleAStory)
1. Chapter 1

_A/N- This started off as a quick one-shot that I previously posted to tumblr, but it took on a life of its own...So here it is :)_

Disclaimer: I do not own Castle or anything about it, but all mistakes are mine!

* * *

**_Medical Attention_**

* * *

S1 AU Based on a tumblr prompt from anon: Castle's a doctor, a friend of Lanie's. AU Caskett meeting at Lanie's birthday. *Castle Winter Hiatus 2014 Ficathon Entry*

* * *

**Chapter 1**

"Girl, I can't believe you came!" Lanie called from across the bar. Her surprise brought a huge smile to Kate's face.

"Of course I'm here! It's your birthday! What kind of friend would I be if I didn't show up?" she asked, pulling her friend into a hug.

"Still a great friend, but just your typical anti-social self. I see you actually wore a little lipstick." Lanie was teasing, but there was surprise in her tone. Maybe she did need to get out more.

"Yeah, well I'm not all work," Kate stated with a smile.

"Could've fooled me!"

"And I'm leaving," she joked turning back toward the door, but Lanie grabbed her arm.

"Oh no you're not. I've got someone I want to introduce you to!"

Oh _God._

"I didn't come here to be set up, Lanie. I came to celebrate my best friend's birthday," Kate grumbled while rolling her eyes.

"Well then—consider this just an added bonus!" she smirked and tugged on Kate's hand.

Lanie led her through the crowd to the back of the bar near the pool tables. Kate's eyes were immediately drawn to a tall handsome man who was leaning over the table about to take his shot.

"That's Rick," Lanie whispered.

_Oh_.

"That's Rick," Kate repeated in awe of the man as a smile stretched across his face after hitting the ball perfectly. That man was gorgeous.

They watched as the game finished up and before she knew it, Lanie was waving Rick over to them.

"There's the birthday girl," Rick said with a smile, greeting Lanie with a friendly kiss on the cheek.

"I went to find the friend I was telling you about," she explained.

"You were talking about _me_," Kate hissed through her teeth.

"She was just telling me that she had this beautiful friend that I had to meet and I have to say—her description was inaccurate," Rick said with a slight upturn to his lips.

Kate's heart dropped. "I see."

"Beautiful was an insult to you. You're extraordinary." He winked at her and she could feel the heat rising against her cheeks.

Sure, he was probably just feeding her a line, but she was falling for it. Of course, she wouldn't let _him_ know that.

"I'm sure you say that to every girl you try to hit on," Kate smirked. Lanie cleared her throat which snapped Kate out of her thoughts.

"Dr. Rick Rodgers, this is Kate Beckett," Lanie said, finally getting the official introductions out of the way while rolling her eyes at Kate.

"Detective Kate Beckett," she corrected which earned her an elbow to the ribs from Lanie. "Nice to meet you." She smiled at Rick and extended her hand.

"Pleasure is all mine," Rick said bringing the top of her hand to his lips.

Wow. He was laying it on thick, but for some reason she didn't mind.

* * *

By the time she was ready to leave for the night, three hours and several drinks later, a couple of inches of snow had fallen on the streets outside.

New York was a beautiful blanket of white as she walked out of the bar; a light flurry continued to fall as she looked up at the sky with the smile.

She loved the snow.

"It makes the city calmer I think," Rick said, walking up behind her.

"God, Rick! You scared me!" She had thought she was the only one leaving.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to make you jump. I was just heading home." He gave her a quick smile and she was sure that her face flushed in response. Maybe it wasn't so horrible that Lanie introduced her to Rick.

"Me too," she said with a smile but turned toward the street so he didn't see her blushing.

"Why don't we share a cab? The odds of us finding two separate cabs in this weather in this end of town—not that likely…"

His suggestion wasn't the worst thing in the world. Yet she couldn't bring herself to agree.

"I don't know about tha—" Kate started to decline his offer when she stepped forward and slipped on a patch of ice on the sidewalk. She tried to brace herself from the fall, but in the process she ended up landing on her wrist.

Just what she needed.

"Oh shit! Kate! Are you alright?" he asked, helping her off of the ground.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm fine," she said with a wince.

"You fell on that pretty hard. Let me take a look at it?" He reached out for her arm while running his free hand across her skin. "It's already swelling, Kate. I should probably take you to the ER for an x-ray."

"I slipped on ice. I'll live. Seriously. It barely hurts." She wasn't being completely honest, but this wasn't the first impression she wanted to leave him with.

"Kate…"

"What about the cab? You still want to share?" she asked, trying to take both of their minds off of her clumsiness.

A couple of minutes later they lucked out and were able to wave down a cab. Rick eased himself into the backseat first and then held his hand out to help Kate into the car.

"Are you sure you don't want to get it checked out?" His voice was soft and concerned. He seemed like he really cared, but they had only just met. Was this how he acted with all women?

"Yeah. I'm sure," she whispered.

"You know, I _am_ a doctor."

The cab took a sharp turn and her body slammed against Rick. His cologne overwhelmed her senses, making her drunk from it.

"Hmm. You're a pediatrician and I'm an adult," she teased, moving back to her side of the seat.

"Same principles apply," Rick smirked.

"My bones are stronger than a child's…"

"Actually, bone density starts to decrease—"

Kate reached over with her uninjured arm and covered his mouth. "If that sentence will end in any way that could possible make me feel old, I would advise against it." She smiled at him and removed her hand.

"Noted," he laughed. "So we'll just go home; take a hot bath and go to bed."

Her eyes widened as the words slipped from his lips.

"Excuse me?" she asked, raising an eye brow at him. However in the backseat of the dark cab, she wasn't so sure he could entirely see her face.

"Separately!" Rick clarified with a chuckle and she couldn't help the giggle that escaped from her own lips. "Katherine Beckett. I never!" he teased in a scandalized tone.

"Easy Rick. I knew what you meant and yes, a long bath sounds great right about now," she sighed, leaning back onto the seat as the cab pulled up to the curb outside of her building.

"Do you use lots of bubbles?"

The glare she shot him shut him up as she stepped out of the cab.

"It was nice to meet you, Rick. Goodnight," Kate said with a small smile.

Her arm throbbed as she made her way up to her place, but she couldn't stop her grin from spreading.

She owed Lanie.

* * *

_Thanks for reading! I would love to hear what you think._

_xoxo_

**_Tumblr prompt: Castle's a doctor, a friend of Lanie. They meet at her birthday, or maybe after an accident, Kate refuses to go to the hospital and Lanie calls Rick to check on her._**


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N- I'm completely blown away about the response to this story. Thank you to all of you who are reading this. I hope you continue to enjoy it!_

Jo- thanks for all your help and advice and encouragement with my writing :)

Disclaimer: I do not own Castle or anything about it, but all mistakes are mine!

* * *

**_Medical Attention_**

* * *

Castle's S1 AU Based on a tumblr prompt from anon: Castle's a doctor, a friend of Lanie's. AU Caskett meeting at Lanie's birthday. *Castle Winter Hiatus 2014 Ficathon Entry*

* * *

**Chapter Two**

By the time Beckett got to work the next day her arm was completely black and blue. Not only bruised, her wrist was swollen enough to make wearing a long sleeve shirt a challenge. Her already chaotic entire morning routine had been thrown out of balance because of her injury. She should really get it looked at; Rick was probably right.

A slow smile spread on her lips when she thought of the ruggedly handsome doctor. Lanie's party was the perfect way to get to know him without any unnecessary pressure of a first date. He was charming and smart.

Definitely her type, but she wouldn't ask for his number.

As much as she really enjoyed his company, she wasn't at a place in her life where she could open herself up to dating anyone. She was responsible for too much and she couldn't distract herself with a man.

At least not now.

She cleared her thoughts when she stepped off the elevator. There wasn't any time to daydream about a hot doctor when there were murders to solve and justice to serve. Turning the corner toward her desk, Beckett could see both of her partners were already working on paperwork. That _never_ happened.

"Morning!"

"Hey Beckett," they said in unison. Their synchronicity was a little odd, but it happened more often than she cared to count.

"I didn't see either of you at Lanie's party…" she said, only half listening to their response as she looked down at her desk and started organizing the paper work. Beside it sat her empty coffee cup. That would need to be remedied soon.

"Wait a second, you're telling me that _you_ actually attended a social gathering?" Esposito asked with a raised eyebrow. "You don't _ever_ go anywhere…Did hell actually freeze over?"

"Yeah, well—I promised her I would, so I did. You can both get over your shock and close your mouths. So why didn't you go, Esposito?"

"I had a date."

"Me too," Ryan added. Her head sprung up from what she was doing and now she was looking at her partners in shock.

"With each other?" Kate laughed.

"_With each other_," Esposito mocked. "No, not with each other! My date was hot. I still don't entirely believe Ryan's date actually happened."

"It happened!" he defended.

"What happened?" A familiar voice asked from behind her, causing her to spin around in her chair.

"_Rick_?" Kate asked in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

He grinned at her all the while ignoring the slack jaws of her partners.

"Lanie asked that I come down and discuss something with her this morning…"

Well that sounded suspicious.

"Mmhmm. Pediatricians and medical examiners talk shop all of the time," she smirked.

"Beckett? Would you like to introduce us to your _friend_?" Ryan teased.

"Ryan, Esposito, this is Dr. Rick Rodgers. He's a friend of Lanie's."

Yeah, they weren't going to let this one go easily. First she'd admitted to going to the party last night and now a new man had appeared out of nowhere. Not her typical behavior, she'd admit that.

"Rick, these are my partners, Detective Javier Esposito and Detective Kevin Ryan."

"Nice to meet you both," he greeted with a huge grin on his face.

"Nice to meet you too, _Rick._" Ryan said with a smile.

"Yeah, nice to meet you. A _doctor_. How interesting!" Esposito mocked.

She could see where this conversation was going and Rick didn't deserve it; especially since he was someone she just met. The big brother routine would have to wait for another day.

"Let's go to the break room. Too many prying eyes," Kate said in a tone loud enough for her partners to hear.

"Hey, I take offense to that," Ryan called over to her as she ushered Rick off into the other direction.

She closed the door behind her and gave Rick a small smile.

"I'm sorry about that."

"Don't worry about it. They call you Beckett?"

"Yeah, it's a cop thing," she explained, walking to the coffee pot to pour herself a cup. Kate pulled another mug down and poured Rick a cup which he gladly accepted.

"Ooo, I could call you Beckett, too. Pretend I'm a cop."

Her lips turned upwards from his childlike excitement. He was adorable.

"If you're a cop, what happens to all your patients? You'd break all their little hearts," Kate argued.

"I didn't say _be _a cop. I said _pretend_ just so I could call you Beckett. I think that's fun," he said which brought a giggle from her lips. She was giggling? Who was this guy? Trying to keep a shred of dignity, she drank a long sip of coffee and took a deep breath.

"Rick, why did you really stop by?"

"Lanie said she needed me to meet her but I should've known better. It was just her way of getting me here so she could ask me about last night," Rick said while rolling his eyes.

"About last night?"

"Don't tell me she hasn't asked you about me?"

"I actually just got into work so I haven't seen her yet today," she explained, "but yeah I'm sure she'll ask."

"And what are you going to tell her?"

"I'll tell her that I had a blast at the party and then I embarrassed myself by slipping on some ice," she laughed and took another sip.

"No reason to be embarrassed. How's your wrist?"

She sucked in a breath, biting down on her lip to hold back a wince.

"It's fine."

"Which leads me to believe it's the exact opposite of fine. Let me see."

Kate took a moment before giving in and letting Rick roll up her sleeve.

"It'll be okay tomorrow—"

"No, it won't. Beckett, I'm 95% sure your wrist is broken. Please let me take you to the ER. We can go to the one that I sometimes make consultations at. This way you can get in and out without a long wait—but please let me take you."

Releasing a long sigh, Kate nodded. "Okay. It hurts like hell. Let's go."

"You may be the most stubborn patient I've ever had."

"Not your patient, Rick."

"Yeah, yeah. Let's get moving. Doctor's orders."

The phrase 'if looks could kill' may have applied at this point.

* * *

Kate's boss Captain Montgomery seemed to understand when she explained that Rick wanted to take her to the ER. His exact words to her were, '_You're no good to me in the field if you're injured. Get it taken care of_.' Maybe that was his own way of being sympathetic? Maybe it was a cop thing?

He could understand why Lanie enjoyed working with the cops. The precinct had an interesting vibe that his pediatric office didn't have.

Not that he didn't love his career.

Helping kids was most definitely his calling. Hell, he was a big kid himself; at least that was what his first wife Meredith had said. Yet, he was more responsible than she was so he got the honor of raising their daughter while she had decided that Los Angeles and her career were more important than motherhood.

No, he wouldn't trade his medical practice or seeing his patients grow up, but the precinct was cool.

Different, but cool.

Although, the one thing that held the majority of his interest at the precinct was the gorgeous brunette detective who he was currently escorting into the ER. She was guarded, but last night there had been a definite spark between them. That was the first time he felt like that upon meeting a woman in a long time. She wasn't a one night stand; she had potential.

He told Kate to sit in the waiting room chairs so he could go up to the check in desk and get her paperwork.

"Hi Denise," he said with a charming smile.

"Oh! Dr. Rodgers, I didn't notice you come in. Do you have a patient in the ER?"

"No, no. I'm not here on rounds or anything. My friend, Kate Beckett, hurt her wrist and I was hoping we could just get her back there for a quick x-ray." He signed Kate in quickly and handed the clipboard back to Denise.

"Sure! No problem. I'll call back to radiology and have them set up. I can get her back into an exam room and have Dr. Blakely meet her back there with the paperwork."

"You are a huge help as usual! Much appreciated," he said with a wink before he walked back to Kate.

"Kate Beckett?" An ER nurse called out for her. She must have been new because he had never seen her before.

"Wow, that was fast. Did you bribe the woman at the front desk?" Kate asked with a laugh. Her laugh was enchanting and he found himself staring at her smile before he realized he had probably passed the length of time that it was socially acceptable before answering. "Rick?"

"Oh, um. No. Denise has worked at the hospital for years so she's usually here whenever I have a patient I need to see or sign a transfer. She's a friend, so she did me a little favor," he said while putting a palm to the small of her back to direct her toward the exam rooms.

"I can wait here if you'd like," he offered.

"Rick, it's my arm. It's not like I'm getting stripped down naked," she teased. Now there was a thought.

_Focus_. Need to focus.

"I wouldn't object if you wanted to do that as well," he said, with a raised eyebrow and a laugh. Kate jabbed him in the side with her uninjured arm for that comment. He would never admit it to her, but that kind of hurt.

"Keep dreaming, doctor boy!"

"Doctor boy? Trust me Kate, I'm all man," Rick joked bringing an adorable shade of pink to her cheeks.

"Well I'll have to be the judge of that."

Now he was pretty sure he was the one blushing. Last night at the bar, she had been teasing him just as much as he had her. Her sense of humor was something that had drawn him to her immediately. He couldn't figure out why Lanie hadn't introduced the two of them earlier. She was definitely his type.

"That can be arranged later if you'd like," Rick laughed, but she just gave him a small turn up of her lips. The moment had passed and her flirtatious smile had vanished.

He couldn't read her.

Kate seemed to be attracted to him too, but every time he had mentioned the possibility of dinner or a movie last night she had changed the subject. She had a wall of some sort.

A few minutes later, she was whisked away to radiology where they detected that she had a hairline fracture in her wrist.

"So it's only slightly broken," Kate sighed.

"Still broken enough. We just have to wait for the ER doc to come back and he'll explain everything that you have to do."

She looked down at her phone and rolled her eyes.

"Montgomery just texted me and said he didn't want to see me for the rest of the day. I have a broken arm. I haven't been shot."

"True, but I'm sure you're in a lot of pain by now."

"Maybe," she huffed.

"If you're a good girl, I'll take you for ice cream." She groaned and poked him in the side. "Ow!"

"Don't treat me like a child."

"Well you are kind of my patient…"

"Not at all your patient, Rick. I'm Dr. Blakely's patient, but—" she paused and then looked down at her watch. "I'll let you treat me for ice cream."

"You drive a hard bargain, Detective."

"I try my best, Doctor."

It was true. Kate Beckett was a mystery, but it was one he wouldn't mind spending some time trying to solve.

* * *

Kate had finally settled things down for the night and she was cleaning up the kitchen from cooking dinner. However, trying to do everything with just one good arm had made what was always a difficult nightly routine harder. She would have loved to sit down with a glass of wine after the long day she'd had, but the pain meds that Rick had insisted she needed couldn't be taken with alcohol. So she sat down on the couch with a glass of water and reached for the novel on the end table that she was in the middle of reading. Not really what she was in the mood for, but it would do.

Just as she opened the book to the page she was on, someone knocked at her door. She looked down at her father's watch. Who would be visiting at nine o'clock?

In a state of confusion and wariness, she walked to the front door and looked through the peephole before opening the door.

"Rick, what are you doing here? And how did you know my apartment number?"

She was a little surprised to see him at her door, but not shocked. Kate opened the door a little wider so she could step out into the hallway with him, leaving the door open just a crack. Rick raised his eyebrow, apparently in confusion that she hadn't invited him inside.

"Lanie gave me your address. I came to check on my patient…"

"Didn't we clear this up earlier? You brought me to the ER. You're still not my doctor," she grinned.

"Can I come in?" Rick gave her an eager smile when their eyes met, but she broke the contact to look down at her fidgeting hands. She objected with a slight shake of her head.

"It's not really a good time, we can talk right here. What did you need?" His smile fell and his brow furrowed in confusion from her denial.

"Kate? What's going on?" he asked. "I thought we got along great at Lanie's party and then today I thought we had a good time together considering... We have a connection and yet—we're having a conversation in your doorway…"

"Rick, we did have a good time. And yes—I feel that connection too, but—I just can't date right now."

"I'm not asking you to marry me, Kate. I just want to take you on a date. Maybe dinner? Maybe a movie? Just something fun."

"That sounds great, it really does, but it's not a good idea right now." The door behind her cracked open a little more and she could feel little arms wrap around her leg.

"Mommy? Who's at the door?" She took a sharp breath and turned toward the boy with a smile; opening her arms to him. As carefully as she could with one arm, Kate lifted him up. Turning back toward Rick, his expression was understandably stunned as Kate kissed the boy on the cheek.

"Kate?"

She wiped her hand over her eyes in defeat and opened the door even wider for Rick to come inside.

"Rick, this is Liam, my son."

* * *

_**TBC**_

_Thanks for reading! I would love to know what you all think!_


	3. Chapter 3

_A/N- If you are reading this...Thank you! I apologizing for not responding to your reviews but I'm still in process. I just wanted to post this chapter for you all to read. Thanks again!_

_Jo- thanks for all your help as always :)_

_Disclaimer: I do not own Castle or anything about it, but all mistakes are mine!_

* * *

**_Medical Attention_**

* * *

_Castle's S1 AU Based on a tumblr prompt from anon: Castle's a doctor, a friend of Lanie's. AU Caskett meeting at Lanie's birthday. *Castle Winter Hiatus 2014 Ficathon Entry*_

* * *

**Chapter 3**

So that was her big secret?

That's why she was blowing him off.

"Kate?" he asked, following her farther into her apartment as she set the little boy onto her couch in the living room. "Kate? Talk to me." He didn't want to push her, but she had finally invited him inside and now she wouldn't say a word.

Turning to her son, Kate brushed a kiss on to her forehead. "Baby, I'm going to go talk to Mommy's friend in the kitchen. Just lay here and close your eyes. I'll take you back to bed in a minute."

"Okay, Mommy," the boy whispered and gave her a tight hug. Turning away, Kate motioned for Rick to follow her to the small kitchen area. He pulled off his coat and leaned it on one of the bar stools.

"Now you understand…" she murmured.

"Now I understand? What exactly am I supposed to understand? You're a mother…" He had a daughter. The fact that Kate had a kid didn't change his interest in her.

"Exactly. I'm a mother. Liam comes first, so I can't—I just can't get involved with anyone right now," she explained, walking to the sink to fill a quick glass of water, only to take a sip before dumping it back out. She seemed nervous and wouldn't even look at him. Maybe this was too bold of a move and maybe she would kick him out of her apartment, but he walked over to her and carefully pulled her into his arms. She acted like she was offended at first, but eventually sank into his embrace; laying her head onto his shoulder.

"It doesn't change anything, Kate."

She nudged out of his arms, quicker than he would've preferred, but at least she didn't punch him for holding her in the first place. She shot him a look and started to pace.

"How can it not? I can't exactly just go someplace on a whim. My life is nothing but complicated, Rick."

He tried to reach out to her and calm her down, but now she was shying away from his touch.

"Everyone's life is complicated in some way. The fact that you're a mom? That's not a complication—it's just another layer to the Kate Beckett onion that I'm peeling away. You're a mystery Kate—one that I hope to one day learn more about." He tried to explain the best that he could, but words were failing him. Then it hit him; she didn't know about his daughter.

"Rick, take a look around. This is my life. Precinct by day; single mom by night. Not that glamorous or exciting."

"Who said I wanted glamorous or exciting? Plus, I know a thing or two about being a single parent. I was raised by a single mom and now I'm a single dad."

Her head shot up in shock. That got her to stop pacing. He gave her a small smile, trying to convey to her that he understood.

"Lanie didn't tell me that you had a kid." Her voice seemed softer, a little less on edge. He watched as her shoulders relaxed and her breathing evened. "Coffee?"

Rick nodded in agreement and pulled out a stool from the breakfast bar to sit down on.

"Well she didn't tell me you had one either, but maybe she knew we had something else in common and that we'd figure it out," he said with a shrug.

"So you're a dad…" Kate started, handing him a steaming mug full of coffee. Their fingers brushed against each other as he reached for it, the simplest of touches igniting him, and he felt like a teenager again. He took a long sip and pulled out the stool next to him for her to sit down.

"Alexis," he said, showing Kate a picture from his phone. "She's fifteen going on thirty. I think sometimes she's more of the parent than I am. I really lucked out with her." He chuckled and then looked down at his cup.

"She's beautiful. Where's her mom, if you don't mind me asking?" Kate asked, placing her hand on his forearm.

That was _unexpected_, but he didn't want to draw any attention to it because it felt nice. It seemed natural.

"Meredith lives in California. She wasn't exactly fit for motherhood, so I got full custody of Alexis in the divorce."

"Single dad and full time doctor? How do you find time?"

"It was hard in the beginning before I joined the practice, but I was lucky that I had my mother's help. She was in between roles—"

"Roles?"

"Yeah, she's an actress. Mostly small stage roles now, but when I was a kid she had enough work to keep us traveling around the country until I started boarding school."

"Sounds like you've had some life."

He shrugged, but gave her a smile. Rick wasn't one to usually open up to anyone. Yet with Kate, he wanted to share. He looked back toward the couch and smiled at her son passed out.

"So know you know a bit about my story…"

"Liam's three. He's a handful, but I wouldn't trade being his mom for anything in the world," she said with a sigh, hiding her face from him again.

"His dad?" He was prying. He winced as soon as the question left his lips, but he could tell there was a story there. It had always been in his nature to be curious.

"Not in the picture. Never gave him the time of day," she replied, her voice void of emotion.

"His loss. Liam's adorable. I would love to officially meet him one day."

He knew he was being forward, but he was sitting here with her and he couldn't think of any reason why this would be a bad idea. They were sitting here, opening up to each other, and there was a level of comfort he hadn't felt with someone in a very long time.

The look on her face appeared to be conflicted. "Rick, I don't know about that. In another life, I think we could be something. I do. But in this life? The reality is, I rarely get a sitter so my free nights are usually spent cuddling on the couch reading to him or watching a movie."

"And that sounds great…" He was pretty sure she could make anything entertaining.

"You say that now, but it gets old quickly." She shook her head and took a deep breath to admit. "I haven't gone on a date in over a year. Most men get tired of the idea of waiting for me to find someone to watch him. Of the ones I've dated since having Liam, none have stuck around past the first date. So I promised myself that I wouldn't let him get attached to someone since people don't have the habit of sticking around." Kate rambled her confession, her voice losing confidence at the end. Finishing up her drink, she stood up, but he slid his hand over to squeeze her free hand.

"Sounds like a challenge."

"No, not a challenge. It's just how my life has to be," she said, giving him a sad smile before she walked her mug to the sink.

Rick could feel the sadness in her words and he hated to think she carried this around with her every day. The woman he met yesterday at the party was happy and magnetic. He could still see her in Kate's eyes, but she was overshadowed by the duty and responsibility of the woman who stood before him.

"Sounds pretty lonely, Kate." He took his final sip of his coffee and met her by the sink. His arm brushed against hers as he placed his empty mug in the basin. She turned to face him, close enough to feel the heat from her body.

"I have him," Kate said, motioning to her sleeping son.

"You can be a great mom and love your son and still be lonely," he whispered, leaning his body forward, the pull from her was too strong.

"I'm fi—" She moved away and he didn't follow. He didn't want to come on too strong. He didn't want to scare her away.

"Don't say you're fine. Fine is just a placeholder of a word. Fine is a word a person uses when they don't want to say what's really on their mind."

"Rick…"

"Kate, just look at me. Your son? He's not a deal breaker for me. He doesn't make me any less interested in you, but I can see you have your guard up. Almost a wall—trying to protect yourself."

"I'd do anything to protect him."

"Understandable. I just want the opportunity to get to know you better."

"I can't promise anything," she said with a sigh, but looked up to meet his eyes. "But I'm not saying no."

"Then there's hope…" He smiled at her and grabbed his coat.

"Hope can be a scary thing."

"Or it can be the best." He leaned down to kiss her cheek. A gorgeous shade of pink flushed her cheeks as he turned away and walked toward the door. "Get some rest, Kate. I'll talk to you soon."

"Good night, Rick," she responded in a hushed tone and he clicked the door behind him shut.

* * *

He practically floated home to his loft.

Even though Kate turned him down initially, he couldn't shake the feeling that she wasn't really saying no. There had to be some way to let her that she could trust him.

"Hey, Dad. Did you go see that detective?" Alexis asked as he walked through the front door.

"I did. How did you know?" He flopped down on the couch next to her.

"Because you couldn't stop talking about her at dinner. I could just tell. You like her…" she said, raising her eyebrow. She was giving him the look. The parental 'I know more than you think' look, which caused laughter to spill from his lips and he nudged her shoulder.

"I do."

"Surprised to see you home already then," Alexis said, rolling her eyes. Sometimes it was like she thought she was the parent.

"First of all, not exactly the statement I want to hear coming from my daughter. Second of all, she's different," he beamed.

"By the goofy look on your face, I'm going to guess this is a good different."

"It is. And she has a son."

Alexis gave him a shocked look and then nodded with a laugh.

"Hmm. I see. Definitely different from the usual women you date."

"We're not dating."

Yet. Maybe he was overly confident, but he couldn't imagine a world where he and Kate Beckett didn't end up dating.

"I don't understand. You just were over there and you said you liked her. Did I miss something?"

"She doesn't think dating anyone is a good idea—I want to show her she can trust me. Maybe I should send her flowers tomorrow. Show her I'm thinking of her…"

"Anyone can send her flowers. Do something that shows that you care about her," she suggested. A grin slowly formed on his face as the idea dawned on him.

"Pumpkin, have I ever told you how smart you are?" he asked, pulling her into a bear hug and kissing her forehead.

"About once a day, but I'm sure not enough," she laughed.

"Remind me to tell you more often," he said with a chuckle. "Goodnight."

"Night, Dad."

He just needed to send a reminder so she would know that he was there.

* * *

Her morning was smoother than she'd expected. Liam didn't argue about getting ready for daycare today and he gave her extra kisses on her injured wrist. When she dropped him off in the preschool room, she gave him a big hug and he joined the rest of the kids with a small wave. He was becoming his own little person; it was bittersweet.

Her baby boy wasn't a baby anymore.

Liam's daycare was just a short walk to the precinct so she enjoyed the cool breeze and rare sun on the winter morning. She waved at Jones in the lobby as she entered the elevator. It was safe to say; Kate Beckett was in a great mood today.

As she walked up to her desk, she found a travel cup of coffee sitting on her desk which brought a small fluttering sensation in her stomach.

"Espo? Did you see someone in here this morning?" she called across the bullpen to her partner.

"Nah. It was sitting here when I got here two minutes ago," he said, looking up from his paperwork.

She looked closer at the cup and she noticed a small note slid underneath the bottom.

'_Here's to HOPE…_

_(By the way: the coffee in your break room tastes like a monkey peed in battery acid. Vanilla lattes seem more like you.)'_

A warm feeling spread throughout her chest and she couldn't suppress the grin from forming on her lips. Hope had always been a bad thing, but she wanted to believe in him.

She wanted to believe he was different.

It scared her to death. She had only known him for two days, but he already had her feeling like the things she had closed her mind to may actually be possible. He was friends with Lanie and she trusted her friend. If Rick was anything like any previous relationship or even like Liam's dad, Lanie would've never introduced her to him.

She reached for the cup of coffee and drank in the vanilla warmth with a happy sigh. It was the best coffee she had tasted in awhile. Kate closed her eyes, savoring the caffeine.

Just what she needed.

Here's to hope, she thought again.

Reaching into her back pocket, Kate pulled out her cell phone and found Rick's contact that he gave her the day before.

'_Thanks for the coffee. It's perfect. How about coming over for a movie tomorrow? 9 o'clock?'_

About ten minutes later, she received a text notification back.

'_I'll be there.'_

Maybe hope wasn't such a bad thing.

* * *

_**TBC**_

_Thank you so much for reading! I would love to hear from you :)_


	4. Chapter 4

_Jo- thanks for all your help as always :)_

_Disclaimer: I do not own Castle or anything associated with it, but all mistakes are mine!_

* * *

**_Medical Attention_**

* * *

Castle's S1 AU Based on a tumblr prompt from anon: Castle's a doctor, a friend of Lanie's. AU Caskett meeting at Lanie's birthday. *Castle Winter Hiatus 2014 Ficathon Entry*

* * *

**Chapter 4**

"Mommy."

"Liam."

"Mommy."

"Liam. Babe, you're supposed to be asleep," Kate sighed, giving up on the verbal sparring with her three year old.

"I missed you," he whispered as he looked down at his feet.

"You can't miss me every time I put you to bed."

"I do. 'Cause I love you." The tiny smile that stretched on his face after he spoke made it nearly impossible to be angry at the child for getting out of bed.

"Well, I love you too, but it's past your bedtime." She knew it was a lost cause as she watched him walk further into the room.

"But I'm not sleepy. Can we cuddle?" Liam asked, jumping up on the couch next to her. She looked down at her son burrowing his way into her side and lifted her newly casted arm to wrap him closer into her embrace.

"Not tonight, Sweetheart. I'm having a friend over."

He lifted his head to look up at his mom. "A friend? Like Aunt Lanie?"

"Well no, not Aunt Lanie, but he's a friend." She figured there wasn't a reason to explain to a three year old what a date was.

"Are you going to play cars? You can play with my train…"

"I don't think we're going to play with toys tonight. We're probably just going to just watch a movie. So I need a certain little boy to go to bed," Kate said with a laugh and a quick tickle of his side.

"Can I watch too? We can watch Nemo…"

"I think this time it just has to be Mommy and her friend. Maybe another time."

She smiled down at her son and pulled him into her lap to give him a hug.

"You're squeezing me so tight, Mommy!" he giggled. "I can't breathe!" he squealed in delight.

"You wanted to cuddle," she said as laughter spilled from her lips and she hugged and tickled her son. "Cuddle, cuddle, cuddle."

"No more cuddles! No more cuddles!"

"Thought you wanted to cuddle?" Mother and son were near hysterics with laughter; this was her favorite part of being a mom. These simple moments of joy.

"No more! No more!"

"Fine. Then back to bed with you, Little Boy," Kate said as she scooped her son up into her arms and carried him back into his bedroom.

"Tuck me in please."

She pulled his blankets up to his chin and tucked them in tightly into the sides of his body.

"Snug as a bug?" she asked as she turned on his dinosaur night light.

"In a rug," Liam replied with a sleepy giggle. After a moment, his eyes started to droop closed. Kate smiled down at him and brushed a light kiss onto his forehead.

"Goodnight," she whispered as she walked to the doorway and clicked the door shut softly behind her.

Taking a deep breath, she glanced down at her watch. Rick would be here in a couple minutes and she should double check that she was presentable at least. She headed into her bedroom for a moment to look at herself in the mirror. Not the best she had ever looked, but it wasn't the worst either. She looked like a tired mother after a long day of work. This was her life; she wouldn't try to pretend to be something she wasn't.

Okay, well maybe she should at least change her shirt. Liam had chocolate and he had apparently shared his snack with her shirt.

Lovely.

Kate threw the stained shirt onto a pile of clothes that needed to be dry-cleaned and pulled out a soft purple sweater that paired perfectly with her dark-washed skinny jeans. Running her fingers through her short hair, she reassessed her appearance in the mirror.

Minor improvement.

Maybe she cared more about his opinion of how she looked than she had originally thought.

An anxious feeling fluttered in her stomach. Initially she had convinced herself that this was just two friends hanging out, but now as she stared at herself in the mirror she knew she was fooling herself.

This was a date with Rick Rodgers.

Rick Rodgers the hot pediatrician.

What the _hell_ was she doing?

Kate had a date and she was the one who invited him over. This was such a bad idea!

* * *

Rick ran his hand through his hair and took a deep breath. He typically wasn't nervous about going to a woman's apartment, but Kate Beckett was not the typical woman. When the text came through yesterday, inviting him over, he'd had to read it a couple times to believe that she was being serious.

His evening plans had been the only thing that kept him going today at work. Cold and flu season had hit the area hard and he had lost count of the number of times he was sneezed on today. He had rushed home to shower and change as soon as he wrote his last script for cough medicine and signed off on his charts for the day.

On the way to her place, he stopped at a florist to buy a simple yellow rose. He didn't want to show up empty handed, but wine or a bouquet of red roses? That was too much pressure. That would be overkill.

Taking one more deep breath, he let his lifted fist hover near the door. Now or never. A moment passed and he could hear movement through the walls, but he didn't want to knock again in fear of waking up her son.

"Hey," Kate said, swinging the door the open. Her smile appeared hesitant as she shifted her weight on her heels. He could tell she was nervous too. At least he wasn't the only one.

Walking through the front door, he glanced around the apartment, finally appreciating the eclectic decorations that adorned her space that he had missed last time. After taking it all in, he turned back to her and smiled.

"You look great. I brought this for you." He handed her the long-stemmed flower, allowing his hand to briefly brush against hers. The spark that had been present in the few past touches of the last couple days was still heavily present, if not amplified.

"Thanks. It's beautiful," Kate murmured as she looked down, sweeping her fingertips over the petals. Her cheeks held a pink warmth that begged to draw him closer, but he resisted the urge. The date was her idea and he didn't want to make any move that would make her regret it. Before he could analyze the situation any further, Kate reached for his hand and led him to the couch.

Well that was unexpected, but nice.

"So what are we watching?" he asked, sitting down next to her as his thumb began to trace patterns on the top of her hand. Holding hands was the simplest of acts but from what he could gather, this was Kate taking a leap.

She leaned closer into his body and grinned. "Um, I was thinking we could watch—"

"Nemo?"

Kate jumped off of the couch at the sound of the small voice. His hand fell back to the couch as he turned his attention to the hall where the request came from.

"Liam, Babe. You're supposed to be in bed." With a slight upturn to her lips, Kate walked over to the little boy. The way that she positioned her body to him, Rick could tell that she was flustered. He knew that she didn't want them to be introduced. They hadn't even completed one date yet.

"I want to watch a movie," Liam said in a fake stage whisper.

"We can watch movies tomorrow. I have all day off. Just you and me." Her voice was calm and loving as she spoke to her son. The little boy peeked around Kate to look at Rick, before hiding his face back behind her body.

"Who's that?"

"That's Mommy's friend," she explained as she kneeled down to be at eye level with him. Liam poked his head around again and then hid again like a full body version of peek-a-boo.

"Is he nice?"

"I think so." Rick huffed quietly at her response, but it must have been loud enough for Kate to hear since she was now laughing.

"Are you nice?" he called out, looking passed her legs again.

"I try to be."

"Do you like kids?" Was her son interviewing him? A soft laugh was still heard from Kate while she ruffled Liam's hair at his questioning.

"I do. I even have a daughter, but she's a little older than you."

His face lit up with the news. Silence fell over the apartment as Liam just stood there not saying a word, but after a minute, he moved past Kate towards Rick. Kate turned around to watch, but her expression was frozen now. Rick would think this was exactly the opposite of what she wanted to happen.

"Okay," Liam said and then paused. "Do you like Mommy?"

Rick's eyes shot up to meet Kate's and she mouthed an apology to him.

Her son wasn't shying away from the important questions. It was almost endearing to watch Liam interrogate him. If he could imagine, Rick would assume the boy was already picking up his skills from his mother.

"I think I do," he replied without breaking eye contact with Kate and she beamed at him.

"Good. Mommy doesn't have a lot of friends," Liam said, crawling up on the couch opposite to Rick.

"Um, Liam, I think he's done answering questions."

"What's your name?" Liam asked, staring up at Rick while ignoring his mom's suggestion.

"It is Ri—"

"Dr. Rodgers," Kate corrected, interrupting Rick's introduction. So she was going the formal route…

"You're a doctor? Cool!" Liam's eyes widened and he scooted closer to him.

"It can be."

Kate moved to join them in the living room and grabbed Liam's hand.

"Okay, Sweetheart, it's time for little boys to go back to bed."

"Nemo?" Liam asked again, turning toward his mom with the cutest puppy dog look that Rick had ever seen. Kate sighed, dropping Liam's hand and running hers through her hair. He could tell that she was losing her resolve.

"Kate, I'm okay with whatever you're comfortable with." He didn't want to overstep and invite Liam to watch the movie with them, but he also didn't want Kate to think it wasn't an option. Her eyes moved from Liam to meet Rick's as her lips turned up.

"Okay, Nemo it is."

* * *

The credits were rolling on the movie as Kate moved the popcorn bowl onto the coffee table. Rick had to admit that this wasn't exactly how he thought their first date was going to be, but it was fun. Her son was fun and Kate seemed more at ease with the fact that Liam crashed their evening.

"Sorry about tonight. We can do a first date do over at one point when I can find a sitter," she said, looking back at him. He grinned back at her and shook his head.

"Nothing to apologize for. He's great. I had a good time, Kate."

Rick looked down at Liam passed out against his side and then turned back toward her. Her eyes held a look of awe, but he could still see the hint of concern.

"Not the night I planned."

"Probably not, but it was fun."

She smiled and nodded.

"It was. How many times have you watched this movie? You were reciting the dialogue at points!" she teased. She stood up and stretched before he watched her take the dishes to the sink. He was about to offer to do that for her since she was slightly fumbling with her cast, but then he looked down at Liam and really didn't want to wake him.

"It helps to know what kids like, helps me relate to my patients. Finding Nemo has always been a favorite though—Alexis and I watched it four times when it was in theaters."

"Well I think your patients are lucky to have you. You're great with kids. Liam warmed up to you pretty quick. That's not usually the case." Her voice broke at the end and she turned back to the sink.

"That worries you. I can tell." His words hung in the air and he watched as Kate's shoulders slumped.

After a small span of awkward silence, Kate moved back to the living room and sat down next to the boys. Placing her hand onto Rick's hand that was placed on Liam's back, she squeezed it before moving to card her fingers through Liam's hair.

"It's just—it's not that I don't think you're a great guy and I know you wouldn't intentionally hurt either one of us, but we don't know what will happen between you and me. Our first date and look at him. What if this doesn't work and it implodes?"

"Kate, I understand it's scary for you and I don't want to do or say something to make you regret giving this a try. I really like you, but we don't have the answers. We just have to live with the questions and … find our way."

He always had a way with words which helped in most areas of his life and the soft expression that formed on Kate's face confirmed that his words helped now.

"Easier said than done," she whispered.

"Maybe, but I would like to see you again. Another date—instead of worrying about what could happen, let's just live in the present." He lifted his hand to lace his fingers through Kate's as she was pulling her hand away from Liam. She looked down at their joined hands and smiled.

"So a date with my three year old didn't completely scare you away."

He shook his head.

"Nope. Though you can have him call me Rick. Dr. Rodgers is for my patients…"

Squeezing his hand once more, Kate wiggled her hand free and stood up.

"I'll consider it," she said while scooping up her sleeping son into her arms. "I'll be right back. Let me lay him down."

Tonight with Kate and her son had been refreshing. It was probably the best date he had been on in awhile. Maybe she was afraid of Liam getting too attached to him, but as he watched Kate walked out of the room Rick sighed.

Rick was afraid that he was the one that was already growing attached.

_**TBC**_

* * *

_Thank you so much for reading! I would love to hear from you! :)_


	5. Chapter 5

_A/N: Thank you all for reading and all the kind words. You guys are truly amazing and appreciated! (Joanna and Janna thanks for all you advice)_

_Jo- thanks for all your beta magic_

_Disclaimer: Castle isn't mine, but all my mistakes are._

* * *

**_Medical Attention_**

* * *

Castle's S1 AU Based on a tumblr prompt from anon: Castle's a doctor, a friend of Lanie's. AU Caskett meeting at Lanie's birthday. *Castle Winter Hiatus 2014 Ficathon Entry*

* * *

**Chapter 5**

Bright colors washed across the room with a variety of child-friendly paintings decorating the space. As far as doctors' offices went, this one was adorable. Looking around the waiting area, the chairs were filled with parents and kids alike. The children looked miserable and the parents had the empty expressions from sleepless nights. She could relate.

Maybe she shouldn't surprise him. He obviously had a full schedule.

Kate stood in the middle of the room with a carrier containing two cups of coffee and she suddenly felt very out of place. It wasn't like she hadn't spent her fair share of time in a pediatrician's office with Liam, but she had never just stopped by to bring a doctor a cup of coffee during cold and flu season.

She looked like some clueless idiot frozen in her spot.

"Excuse me, Miss? Can I help you?"

The woman at the check-in window called out to her breaking her trance.

"Oh—uh, Dr. Rodgers. I wanted to bring him this," she stuttered, as she felt blood rush to her cheeks. This was why she didn't date anymore. She overanalyzed everything to the point where it turned her into a bumbling fool.

"Dr. Rodgers is with a patient at the moment. Was he expecting you?"

"No, um. I just stopped by."

"Okay, I'll let him know you're here. What's your name?"

"Detective Kate Beckett."

Seriously, why couldn't she just say Kate?

"A detective? Is Dr. Rodgers in some sort of trouble?" the woman asked, confusion and concern clouding her tone.

"No!" she yelled and then cleared her throat from her outburst. "Sorry. I mean no, of course not. I'm just a friend. Hence the coffee." She lifted the cup carrier to emphasize her point, but she was just digging herself into a hole.

At work, she could take down the worst of criminals on the streets or in interrogations, yet when it came to explaining dropping off coffee to someone she may or may not be dating? She had lost the ability to communicate.

She was not an airhead. She needed to pull herself together.

"_Okay_, I'll let him know you're here."

"Thank you."

Kate set the coffee cups on the ledge by the sliding glass partition and took a deep breath.

She could do this.

Rick would be surprised that she was here, but she couldn't imagine that he wouldn't be happy about it.

He had seemed interested in her during their movie date, yet work schedules had prevented them from seeing each other for the last week. If it was anyone else, she would've thought Rick was blowing her off, but his casual text messages throughout the week had eased her worries.

Despite the disaster of their first date, Rick Rodgers hadn't run.

"He said you can meet him back in his office. He's just finishing up with a patient. Through this door, turn left and it's the second door on the right."

"Thank you," she said with a polite smile.

* * *

She found his office without any real issues, weaving her way between the coughing and sneezing kids. Noticing some kids about Liam's age, she made a mental note to pick up some extra orange juice to keep his immune system up to par. The last thing she wanted was for him to come down with whatever illness of the week was going around at his preschool.

Rick's office was decently sized while still being cozy and inviting. A gorgeous mahogany desk was the main focal point with a leather desk chair and a leather couch off to the side. Bookshelves lined the walls holding medical journals and novels alike. If he had this large of a book collection at his office, she could only imagine what his home was like.

Good to know they both shared a love of reading.

The space was warm and masculine just like him. Her thoughts fluttered back to their movie date and the soft kiss he'd given her before he left for the night.

She hadn't been this smitten with someone since high school and given the snail's pace of this would be relationship; it was all the more fitting.

She set the coffees on his desk and smiled like a kid in a candy store as she was drawn back toward the shelves. Her fingers traced the spines of the books as she read the titles in his collection; before long she found herself lost in thought. Rick was very well read. Classical literature was heavily prominent as well as a mix of her personal favorite genre of murder mysteries.

"Like what you see?" Rick asked, causing her to jump and turn around.

"Rick! Hi! Yeah—uh you have a spectacular collection." She looked up at him with a nervous laugh.

"Thank you. I've always loved to read. Used to think I'd be a writer when I was a kid," he said with a smile as he walked next to her to lean against the bookshelf.

"What made you change your mind?"

He shrugged and looked at the floor before looking back.

"My mom got sick when I was younger. She had to get her appendix out and had some complications. So needless to say, I spent a lot of time with her in the hospital until she was released. The doctors were so nice and they saved my mom. So I had a bit of hero worship of doctors at an early age."

"That's sweet, Rick." She squeezed his forearm to emphasize and she met his surprised expression with a smile.

"Yeah, and then as I got older I started volunteering in the hospital. They needed help in the children's wing reading to the kids. Seeing all the pediatricians helping the kids and making a difference in their young lives, I knew it was my calling."

"You're pretty inspiring, you know that?" she beamed.

"Not as cool as your job on some days, I'm sure. I have moments now and then where I still think about trying to write a murder-mystery. I can only imagine the stories you could tell me."

She bit down on her lip but couldn't hold her giggle.

"Yeah, I could probably bore you to death with the details of the criminal mind."

"I don't think you could ever bore me," he said flashing her a gorgeous smile and a wink. Trying to prevent him from seeing the blush that she knew was on her skin, she walked over to his desk to pick up the carrier.

"I brought you coffee. Repaying the favor from last week," Kate said, handing him his cup.

"You didn't have to repay it, but I'm glad you did because I got to see you."

Their fingers touched for a few moments longer than necessary until Kate shied away and took a sip of her latte. Rick smiled into his own cup and she held her breath as he took a drink. She had asked Lanie if she knew what kind of coffee he liked, but she didn't have a clue.

Kate had taken a complete shot in the dark and ordered him a cappuccino.

"This is good. Thank you—so now you know why I'm a doctor. Why did you become a detective? You don't seem like the typical cop. No offense."

The one question she hated…

"No, none taken. I just—um things happened. Kind of like you were saying, certain things happen to change the path you thought you'd take as a kid," she stammered. It's not like she wouldn't eventually tell Rick about her mother's murder. This just wasn't the time or the place to open that discussion. She had put all of that behind her since Liam was born. "But that's enough about me."

Rick eyed her for a moment. He had to know that there was more to the story, but he didn't press.

"I have another patient in five minutes so I don't have much longer, I'm afraid."

"It's okay. Besides repaying you with coffee, I _actually_ stopped by to see what you were doing for dinner."

He flashed her a surprised grin in which she met.

"Really? I thought you had to work tonight?"

"I was able to switch with someone at the last minute. So if you're still interested…"

All week during their sporadic calls and texts, they had tried to find another time they were both free. After Rick had initially asked her out for tonight and she had to decline, the opportunity for switching a shift came up. It was like fate was intervening; if she believed it that sort of thing.

"Of course. At your apartment?"

"Actually, I was hoping we could go _out_."

"Out?"

"Yep, without the supervision of a certain three-year old," she teased and poked her tongue between her teeth.

"Well I'd be up for dinner with you, whether he was joining us or not. But I have to admit, the idea of you _alone_? I have just the place—unless you already had a spot in mind."

"No. I didn't think that far ahead. I wanted to first see if you were still interested."

"Of course I'm interested."

She took a sip of her coffee and smiled in relief. Tonight was actually going to happen.

"So, dinner?"

"How does seven o'clock sound?" he suggested.

"Perfect. Does this mysterious perfect place have a dress code?" she asked, trying to keep her tone playful but in reality was concerned.

"You don't need a ball gown if that's what you're worried about. I'm sure you'll look great in whatever you decide."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," she murmured, looking down at her hands.

She was screwed. Her closet needed some serious updating. When she looked back up at him, his expression was odd. He had a sparkle to his eyes like he was planning something.

He cut her thoughts short before she had a chance to question it.

"Anytime, Kate," he said, looking down at his watch. "But now, my two o'clock appointment should be here. I have to go." Rick moved toward the door, but turned around to kiss her cheek. "I'll see you tonight."

* * *

Hours after she left Rick's office, she was standing in a robe and a towel, glaring at her closet.

Not a ball gown.

That left her _entire _wardrobe.

Her entire worthless, in need of a serious makeover, wardrobe.

She groaned into her hands. This was a disaster.

"Mommy? Are you crying?" Liam asked, appearing out of nowhere.

"What? Oh, no—no, no. I'm just trying to figure out what to wear. Mommy's going to dinner with Dr. Ro—with Rick, and you're going to hang out with Steph," she said, rummaging through the hangers.

"Steph?"

"Mmhmm. Remember? She's watched you before. You liked her."

"Okay," he said with a shrug and hopped up on her bed. She was starting to give up any hope of finding something decent to wear when she heard someone knocking on their front door. "I'll get it!" Liam yelled, jumping off the bed but stopped in his tracks when he noticed Kate raising her eyebrow at him.

"I'll get it—" she said before looking down at her current state of undress and rolling her eyes. "In my robe. _Perfect_."

"You look silly."

"Thanks for the compliment, Buddy." Kate padded across her apartment with Liam not far behind. "Who is it?"

"It's me. I have a surprise!" Lanie shouted through the door.

"God, Lanie. I don't have time for—" she said, opening the door. "This. Oh my God. What is that?"

Her friend stood in the hallway with a huge grin on her face and a garment bag.

"Your saving grace. I know you, Kate Beckett. How long have you been staring at your closet?" she teased.

"I—uh. _Shut up_," Kate said, pretending to shut the door in her friend's face. Lanie laughed and pushed her way into the apartment.

"Mmhmm. The robe is cute and all but I don't think it's dinner appropriate," she said, raising her eyebrow.

"Aunt Lanie!" Liam shouted, running over and attaching himself to her leg.

"Hey Rugrat. How was preschool?" Lanie asked, ruffling his hair.

"Good! We painted today."

"Pretty cool, Little Man. Now how about you help me turn your Mom into a beautiful princess?"

"Good idea. She was making sad faces by her clothes," Liam giggled, walking with the adults toward Kate's bedroom.

"As I suspected—" Lanie said, turning to eye Kate.

"Are you two done?" Kate asked. Her son had already learned to talk like she wasn't in the room. This wasn't a good sign for when he was a teenager.

"I try to come over and be helpful. I don't need any of your sass," Lanie said with a laugh. "I mean I'm basically responsible for this entire evening. But I still haven't heard a thank you for introducing you to Rick."

"Thank you, Lanie," Kate grumbled as she rolled her eyes.

"That's all I wanted. I knew you two would be perfect for each other."

She watched as Lanie hung the bag on the door and Liam ran to jump in the middle of the bed. Kate noticed a collection of Hot Wheel cars that mysteriously were thrown around the sheets. Nice to see her clothing freak out left her oblivious to her bed turning into a raceway.

"Lane, this is a date. I'm not marrying the guy."

"_Yet_."

Kate scoffed at her friend and turned to search in her closet for shoe options

"The idea of marriage—totally can't even think about that," she muttered.

"I'm just saying. Rick's a great guy, Kate. You can't keep that wall around your heart because you were burned in the past," Lanie said, propping herself on the corner of the bed to face Kate.

"Will left. He left and he picked his career over me." She didn't care about Will anymore, but the sting of his dismissal was still there.

"Well I can tell you this, Rick is _not_ Will. I would've never set you up with him if he was anything like that. You obviously need some help picking a good guy—"

"I'm not helpless," she defended, turning back to face her friend.

"Oh really? Because you have such a great track record."

This wasn't what she wanted tonight. She was excited about this date. The idea of drudging up the past wouldn't do her any good at all.

"I'm not inept."

"Mommy, what's in-_ept _mean?" Damn, she forgot Liam was sitting here listening to the whole discussion. She was going to emotionally damage him against relationships before he was even old even to know what a relationship was.

"It means not good," Kate explained.

"You're not inept," Liam said with a smile causing Lanie to choke back a laugh. Kate glared at her friend and turned back to her son with a softer expression.

"Babe, why don't you go play with your cars in your room while I finish getting ready with Aunt Lanie?"

"Okay, not inept Mommy," he said, hopping off of the bed.

"He's a parrot, Lanie!" she hissed as soon as he left the room.

"Parrot or not, he's yours."

"And I wouldn't trade him for anything in the world. The only silver lining in _that_ messed up situation."

She turned back to her shoes and found a couple different strappy options.

"Yes, but yet another example for a poor choice in men. What sort of man wouldn't want anything to do with that angel?" Lanie asked, and Kate snorted.

Liam's father.

The epitome of a bad choice.

"He was a bit blindsided," Kate whispered.

"Well most men don't expect for the girl they've been seeing for a couple weeks to tell him she was pregnant."

"Yeah. I don't think Scott could've shut the door on my face any faster," she said with a quiet laugh.

Another in a long line of poor choices over her life, but she was happy he wasn't in her life anymore. She just wished he wanted to be in Liam's life. Her son deserved to have a father.

Kate tried to push those memories away and moved to her bathroom vanity.

"He was an ass that you picked up at a bar when you were on the rebound from Will. What did you expect? You weren't exactly looking for father material at the bar. Long term relationships usually don't come from bar hook-ups," Lanie called over to her. Kate poked her head out of the bathroom and gave her a look.

"I met Rick at a bar, remember?"

"You met Rick at my birthday party which happened to be at a bar. Big difference. I introduced you. Saved you the trouble from trying online dating," she clarified.

"I would've never tried online dating."

"Kate, I was about to sign you up myself!"

God, she needed to change the subject.

"Either way…"

"Either way, Rick is neither Will nor Scott or the other first dates that went nowhere."

Kate walked back into her room and sat next to her friend.

"I hope you're right because I really like him, Lanie."

"I can tell. You've never been this hot and bothered about a date before. When you told me earlier about it, you looked so excited I thought you were going to be sick."

"I did not."

"You did. I thought you were going to pass out in my morgue. That's why I knew I had to come and help. So here," she said, motioning to the garment bag that was hanging on the door.

Kate walked over and unzipped it to reveal a gorgeous soft red cocktail dress. The skirt of the dress was fitted and the top was gathered to one shoulder reminiscent of a Greek goddess.

"Lanie, this is beautiful. Where did you…?"

"Don't worry about that. Just try it on. I'm dying to see what you look like in it!"

She ran her hand against the soft fabric and turned back to her friend while biting on her lower lip to hold back a goofy grin. Turning back to the dress, she eased it off of the hanger and hurried to her bathroom to throw it on.

"Oh wow. Lanie…" The words were jumbled as she looked at herself in the floor length mirror. Taking one last glance in the mirror, she walked out to show her friend.

"Oh, Sweetie! You look great."

"Yeah?"

"_Yeah_. Rick's going to love it."

"You don't think this is too much? I mean he didn't technically tell me how nice of a restaurant this was…"

"Where do you think I got this dress?" Lanie asked as her hand flew to her mouth. Obviously she wasn't supposed to say anything.

"I don't understand."

Lanie groaned.

"Rick said you seem concerned about what to wear tonight and he didn't want you to stress about anything. So—"

"He bought me a dress."

"He found you a gorgeous dress that he thought you'd look amazing in and he was right."

Her date bought her a dress. It sounded insane even thinking it.

"Wow. I've never had someone—isn't this a little overkill for a first date?"

"Are you really going to argue a hot doctor being so interested in you that he wanted to ease your stress by buying you a drop-dead gorgeous dress?" she asked, glaring at her.

"Well no. I guess not. You really think I look amazing? Even with this cast?"

"I wouldn't lie. No one will be looking at the cast. Now finish getting ready so I can see the finished product before I have to leave."

* * *

"Mommy's pretty," Liam announced twenty minutes later when Kate walked into her living room to model her completed look for her best friend and her son.

"Yes, she is. This is what Mommy looks like when she goes out on a date," Lanie said, leaning down to Liam.

"What's a date?" Liam asked.

"_Thanks,_ Lanie," she hissed at her friend while shooting her a glare.

"Hey, maybe if you had one every once in awhile the kid wouldn't be so confused," Lanie joked.

"Lanie!"

"On that note, I have to leave. Kate, you look great. Don't do anything I wouldn't do tonight," Lanie said, standing up to hug her.

"What wouldn't you do?" Liam asked in confusion.

"Don't worry about it, Rugrat," she said, messing with his hair some more.

"Thanks for that," Kate whispered as she hugged her goodbye.

"What good would I be if I didn't get Liam to ask you awkward questions?" she asked with a laugh as she walked to the door.

"You know, you could be a good influence?"

"Now where's the fun in _that_! I want details tomorrow Kate, especially if that dress ends up on the floor!"

"Lanie!" she yelled with a smirk as her friend shut the door behind her.

"My clothes always end up on the floor, Mommy. It's okay," Liam said with an innocent tone.

"Yes they do, Babe. Even though you have a hamper right next to your closet," Kate said, smiling.

She was so lucky that Liam didn't understand most conversations that adults had. People really needed to filter themselves more. She couldn't imagine the stories his preschool teachers heard from him…

"Ready to go?"

"Wait! Let me go get Hulk. Steph will like Hulk."

"Okay, but we need to get your coat on and leave," she called after him as he ran off to his room. Picking up her small black clutch from the end table, she reached inside for her phone to check the time. The screen was already lit up from a text message.

'_I'm sorry Ms. Beckett. I can't watch Liam tonight. I think I have the flu.'_

Her heart sank.

There went her perfect evening.

She had never been so disappointed by a sitter cancelling before, but then again she had never had a man worry so much about every detail of a date.

"Mommy? Are you sad?" Liam asked from the hall. She quickly looked up at him and smiled.

"No—no. Liam, I'm fine."

"Okay, because you look pretty. You can't be sad," he said, walking over to her with his Hulk action figure in his hand. Setting the clutch onto the counter, Kate leaned over and pulled Liam into her arms.

"Thanks, Baby. I don't think I could ever be sad with you around," she whispered onto his skin, kissing his cheek and holding him tight.

She didn't want him to ever think he was the cause of her unhappiness. Liam was her world. He had changed her life in so many ways for the better. She'd stopped obsessing over her mom's murder and realized she had a more important life to worry about. Someone who depended on her, someone who needed her.

Yet being a single mom, a night like tonight would've been nice, but it reminded her why she hadn't bothered dating recently.

And now, after all his trouble, she had to break the news to Rick.

Kate set Liam onto the couch and went to call Rick to explain.

"Hello?"

"Hey," she whispered, unable to hide her disappointment in her voice.

"Kate, what's wrong?"

She paused and took a breath.

"I'm really sorry. I know you planned tonight to be amazing and the dress is gorgeous. You thought of everything, but I have to cancel." She raced through the words because even as she said them, her heart sank a little further.

"What? Why?"

"My sitter cancelled and from the dress that Lanie brought over, I'm going to guess that the restaurant you picked out isn't child friendly," she said with a half-hearted joke, but he chuckled through the phone more than seemed necessary.

"That's it? Kate, I wanted our night to be perfect—" he said with what sounded like a smile.

"I know and I'm sorry I'm ruining it—" He was being too nice to her. He should be irritated.

"No, you're not. Like I said, I wanted our night to be perfect so I planned ahead for what could go wrong."

"You planned for my sitter to cancel?"

"I found a backup in case it happened, yes," Rick said with another laugh.

"Is there anything you didn't think of?"

"I don't think I've planned for a zombie apocalypse so let's hope that doesn't happen tonight," he teased. "Just bring him with you to the loft. I've got it covered."

"Rick—" He was going through too much trouble. All to take her out on a date? She didn't deserve it.

"Trust me, Kate."

The words repeated in her head as she realized the terrifying implication of the statement.

Trust him?

She barely knew him.

And yet, she did.

* * *

_**TBC**_

_Thank you so much for reading! I would love to hear what you think! :)_


	6. Chapter 6

_A/N: Thanks to you all. You continue to floor me with your support of this story! (Joanna and Janna- thanks for always being lovely)_

_Jo- thanks for the beta and helping me sprint to the finish of this chapter._

_Disclaimer: I do not own Castle or any of its dialogue, but all mistakes are mine._

* * *

**_Medical Attention_**

* * *

Castle's S1 AU Based on a tumblr prompt from anon: Castle's a doctor, a friend of Lanie's. AU Caskett meeting at Lanie's birthday. *Castle Winter Hiatus 2014 Ficathon Entry*

* * *

**Chapter 6**

The cab pulled up to the building and she helped Liam out of the car before she looked up in awe. She had never been to Rick's place so she had to double check the address from his text message.

So this was where Rick lived.

Squeezing Liam's hand for reassurance, she walked into the building and was greeted by the doorman.

"Can I help you, Miss?" The tall man appeared to be in his sixties with a full head of gray hair and had a welcoming presence about him.

"We're here to see Richard Rodgers."

"Ah yes. Dr. Rodgers said he was expecting visitors. He's on the top floor," he said with a smile.

"Thank God for elevators," Kate said with a nervous laugh.

_Wow._

She had assumed that he made good money as a doctor, but this place was stunning.

"Rick lives here?" Liam asked looking around as they got off of the elevator.

"Guess so."

"It's cool."

"Mmmhmm," she said, smiling down at her son. She looked around the hall to find his door. With one last breath of confidence, she took off her leather jacket, smoothed down her dress, and straightened her hair.

She felt like a girl on prom night.

* * *

Just when he had started to get worried that Kate had gotten lost, he heard a knock at his front door. He glanced at himself one last time in the mirror to make sure he looked okay.

Alexis had helped him pick out a charcoal suit and a crisp white shirt; a nice combination that wouldn't clash with Kate's dress but also avoided looking like they were prom dates from the eighties.

Pulling open the door, he had to remind himself to close his mouth because he was pretty sure his jaw fell when he saw Kate.

Beautiful wasn't strong enough.

Gorgeous was too cliché.

No, Kate Beckett, in that dress was extraordinary.

She flashed him a smile and hesitated at the door before he had realized that he was still standing there staring at her.

"Hi, come in please," he said, trying to recover from his awkwardness.

"Thanks. This place is—wow, Rick. It's great," she beamed, walking into his loft with her son trailing behind.

"Hey Liam. How's it going?"

"Hi Dr—" he started, but looked at his mom and continued. "I mean Rick. Hi Rick."

Liam looked a little nervous in the new surroundings and he kept eyeing Kate to make sure she was still there. It was time to bring in the reinforcements before it was too late.

"Kate, just give me one second and we can be on our way." He motioned with his hand and then raced upstairs to get his daughter. Poking his head inside Alexis' room, he almost ran into her. "Hey—oh. I'm sorry."

"I heard the door. Figured you'd want me down there."

Rick smiled at his daughter and nodded.

"Just a warning though, he looks a little unsure. Are you sure you're okay with doing this?"

"Dad, I wouldn't have agreed if I wasn't. You seem excited about this one and from what you described—she seems like she could be good for you. I want to do anything I can to help." Alex flashed him a supportive smile and leaned over to wrap her arms around his side.

"Thanks, Pumpkin," he said, kissing her forehead as they turned to walk back to where Kate and Liam were standing.

"Kate? Liam? I'd like you to meet my daughter, Alexis."

"Alexis! Hi, it's nice to meet you," Kate said, smiling and reaching for her outstretched hand.

"It's nice to meet you, too. My dad has talked a lot about you—actually about both of you," Alexis said, bending over to talk to Liam. "You must be Liam. My dad told me that you really like Finding Nemo."

"I love Nemo!" Kate's son jumped up and down in excitement.

"I love it, too. My dad has a big movie screen in his office—do you want to hang out with me and watch a movie and eat pizza?"

"Mommy, can I?" Liam asked, turning to Kate. She smiled at him and then looked back up at Rick with a look of astonishment.

His plan had worked.

"Of course, Babe. Rick and I are just going to dinner and we'll be back a little later. You go have fun with Alexis," she said, smoothing down his hair and kissing his cheek.

"Can we have popcorn, too?" Liam asked, turning back toward Alexis.

"Sure, why not? We can let the grown-ups be boring and we can stay here and have a movie party."

"Awesome! Bye Mommy!" Liam said, giving Kate a quick hug before he ran over to stand by Alexis.

Rick smiled at his daughter and mouthed the words 'thank you' to her before turning his attention to his date for the evening.

He was finally going on a date with Kate Beckett.

It had only been two weeks since they had met, but the connection he felt with this woman was undeniable. There was no doubt in his mind that this could be something special, but he didn't want to scare her off with his optimism.

He believed in faith and soul mates and love at first sight.

Even after being burned so badly by Meredith and another close call nearly marrying a woman named Gina who his friend had set him up with - both were disasters in the end - didn't stop him from wanting more.

He believed that he could find true happiness with someone.

After helping Kate into her jacket, he placed a hand on the small of her back and led her out of the apartment toward a waiting town car. A light dusting of snow had fallen on the street since he'd been outside earlier this evening.

It was beautiful.

And the way her eyes sparkled as she turned to him with the smile he'd been dreaming about…

It was almost perfect.

* * *

The atmosphere was buzzing inside Drago. This was the hottest spot in town and basically unless you promised your unborn child to the owner there was no way you were getting a table.

Unless you were Rick.

The owner had promised him a dinner reservation after Rick made a house call a couple months ago for the owner's newborn daughter. He had never worried about using the reservation until the opportunity to take Kate to dinner presented itself.

"Wow. Rick. How did you manage this?" The shock rang in every syllable of her words as the smile on her face stretched bigger than he had ever seen it.

"A magician never reveals his secrets," he said as he wiggled his eyebrows.

"You went through so much trouble—just to go on a date with me. Why?" she asked, her voice soft and unsure. He placed his palm against her cheek and smiled.

"Because it's you."

Her stunned expression said it all. It was obvious no one had ever treated her like this and he was lucky to have the honor of having the opportunity. Kate opened her mouth to respond, but they were interrupted by the hostess letting them know that their table was available.

After sitting, hearing about the chef's specials and ordering a bottle of wine, there was a moment that he couldn't even think of anything to say and he panicked. But luckily Kate found her voice.

"I can't believe you got me a dress, Rick," she said.

"I didn't want you to have to worry about anything. I've only known you for a couple weeks, but I can sense that you don't get many opportunities to let your hair down. I wanted that for you."

"You're pretty unbelievable, you know that?" The grin that she held on her face only grew larger.

"I don't know about that," he said, laughing. "I had the woman at Nordstrom's show me a couple options and as soon as she showed me that one I knew I had to see you in it. And you exceeded all expectations."

Her expression changed in that moment. She seemed to relax.

"I'm glad I didn't disappoint! You know, you don't look so bad yourself, Rick," she said, smirking into her glass of wine. He chuckled in response. "So is this the typical restaurant that Dr. Rodgers takes all of his first dates?"

"Well typically my first dates involve watch Finding Nemo on a couch," he said, holding back a laugh.

"_Funny."_

"And no, this wouldn't be my typical first date. Not that I date all that often to begin with," he said, sipping his wine and glancing at the menu.

"I see. So hot pediatricians don't have woman lined up at their door?" Kate asked with a giggle.

"Hardly. It's been a couple months since my last date so I think that's why Lanie wanted us to meet."

"In a bit of a dating slump?"

He couldn't help but shrug; if he was honest with himself it was a combination of slump and lack of desire to date the same type of woman over and over.

"You could say that. How about you? Obviously I know movie watching with Liam isn't top pick."

Though he wouldn't trade that night for anything; it had been one of the best nights he had in a long time.

"No—no it's not. You're actually the first guy I've allowed to meet him," she said, taking a long sip from her glass.

"Like ever? Since his father?" Rick asked trying to hide the shock, but failing miserably.

"_Including_ his father. They've never met." Kate's eyes met his for a moment and it didn't take long to feel the pain behind her words.

"Your ex never met his son?"

He couldn't imagine never wanting anything to do with Alexis.

"_Nope_."

Kate bit her lip to hold back. He could tell she was upset and he felt awful for bringing it up.

"I don't—"

"Um, his father—" She started to explained but he shook his head.

"I'm sorry. This is the worst date conversation." It was obvious that she didn't want to talk about it. The fact that his own father had never been a presence in his life meant that he felt for Kate's situation more than she knew.

"It's okay, Rick. You seem like a good man and I'm sure you're a great father. But not everyone is—" Kate looked down at her glass, playing with the stem.

"You don't have to explain it to me, Kate. I shouldn't have said anything."

This topic needed to end because he could see her mood plummeting the longer it continued.

"I broke my own rules by letting you meet him," she murmured into her glass, but then lifted her eyes to meet his. "Rules I even told you about when we met—yet I don't regret it." She shook her head and gave him a small smile.

"Kate—"

"I've been burned in the past. _Too many times_. Don't add to my list." Her tone was still off. She was trying to joke with him, but the words fell flat.

"My ex-wife cheated on me with her director and I caught her," Rick blurted out.

"Oh God."

Well that was one way to change the subject.

"Yeah, so trust me. I have a list too. But—you seem different."

"You do too," she said as a genuine smile crept back to her face.

"Here's to different," Rick said, raising his glass to toast.

"Here's to different."

* * *

She stared at the man sitting across the table from her. Tonight had been perfect. Everything she could have wanted in a date. Apart from the rocky start and awkward topic of exes, things could not have gone better.

If there had been any question before, there was no doubt in her mind now; she was falling for Rick.

_Fast._

She couldn't recall the last time, if ever, she had been so enamored by a man.

Things were natural between them.

Easy.

Yet anything but boring. She didn't think spending time with Rick could ever be boring.

He was electric. As embarrassing as it sounded, she almost lost herself in his eyes and didn't hear when he asked her a question.

"I'm sorry. What did you say?" She could feel blood rush to her cheeks.

"Am I boring you?" he asked with a nervous laugh.

"What? No—no! I'm sorry. I promise you have my full attention. Scouts honor!" She gave him a wink and held up a couple fingers.

"You were never a girl scout, were you?" Rick asked, laughing louder.

She hid her head in her hands for a second and looked back up.

"Nope, never. What gave it away?"

Reaching for her glass, she drank the rest of the red liquid. That was amazing wine.

"Alexis was a scout for a couple years and I spent hours helping her. You're holding up the wrong fingers…"

"Damn. So close. Though, I'm _totally_ listening but I probably should stop drinking the wine." She giggled and pointed at her empty glass.

"It's good, huh?"

"It's great. I love red."

"I'll have to keep that in mind for next time."

He grinned at her and she felt her skin buzz. She was in trouble.

"Next time?"

"I was hoping there would be," he said, finishing his glass as well.

"I'd like that."

"Before, I was asking if you wanted to get dessert, but how about we skip that. I have another idea," Rick suggested, reaching across the table to squeeze her hand.

"Well I've trusted your plan for the entire evening so far. So what the hell!" Kate giggled and pulled her bottom lip through her teeth. It was her nervous habit, but for now she was trying to prevent herself from looking like a smitten teenager. "Wait."

"You want dessert now?"

"No. I'm still okay with whatever you're thinking, but can you call Alexis and make sure Liam hasn't tied her to a chair?"

"Little dramatic?" He looked at her and laughed.

"He's pretty resourceful," she teased.

Rick shook his head and pulled his phone out of his pocket to call his daughter. "Liam's adorable."

"You've only seen that side. Alexis could turn her back for a second and he would be on the kitchen counter eating a half gallon of chocolate ice cream."

"Did that—?" Rick started to ask and she nodded.

"Mmhmm. It happened."

"But he's so sweet," Rick protested and she was helpless to stop her grin; the man she was interested in cared about her son.

"That's how he gets you! But he's a trouble maker. He's more like me than I would've expected. So I'm not surprised by anything anymore."

"You sit on your counter eating chocolate ice cream?"

"Only on bad days," she said, laughing and poking her tongue between her teeth.

* * *

Alexis told him that Liam was doing just fine and that they could take all the time they needed, although he could hear Liam reciting movie dialogue loudly in the background. She admitted to bribing him with a piece of chocolate at one point to sit still during the movie, but Rick would just keep that piece of information to himself. However from the sound of it, chocolate seemed to be the norm with Liam.

"Shall we?" he asked, extending his arm to Kate.

"Are you going to tell me where we're going?"

"Not until we get there."

He watched the snow flurry from the car window. This was probably an insane idea in a New York winter. It was a risky idea, but as the car pulled up to the curb there was no turning back.

"I'll be right back."

"Rick?"

He heard her question as he ran into his favorite coffee place to pick up two hot chocolates.

When he opened the door to help her out of the car and she gave him a confused look as he handed her a cup.

"Are you warm enough?" he asked, looking down at her lack of clothing.

"For now, but I don't know how long before the frostbite kicks in," she joked.

"Oh, you have time."

"Thanks, Doctor."

"Oooh, I like when you call me that," he said, raising an eyebrow. Kate looked at him and winked.

"Good to know, but what's going on?"she asked.

"What's going on is, I really like you and I don't want the night to end. I didn't want to go with clichéd or stereotypical activities. So—"

"So you want our date to end with me getting frostbite or hypothermia?" she asked, her tone heavily sarcastic.

"Preferably not. I just figured we could walk around and people watch. You're now equipped with hot chocolate and it's not snowing that much."

"True, but you're forgetting that I'm wearing a _very_ tiny dress under my jacket."

Mentioning the dress again pretty much gave him permission to check her out again. Looking back up at her, he winked.

"Oh, trust me. I'm not going to get the image of you in that dress out of my mind for quite some time."

"Pervert!" she scoffed, pushing his arm in mock offense. He gave her a soft laugh and pulled his arm around her. It felt nice to have her close.

"But seriously, we can just go into the coffee shop if you'd rather just sit there and talk."

Kate met his eyes and smiled.

"Rick, it's not that bad out and I had enough wine to keep me warm for a bit. Lead the way."

* * *

If she was being completely honest with him, the idea of taking a walk while it lightly snowed near Rockefeller Center with hot chocolate in hand? It was romantic.

Which led to the question, if he was such a perfect date, how was he still single?

"You're thinking about something. Did you change your mind? The coffee shop is right around the corner," he said, after they started walking.

"I was just thinking about—tonight has been basically perfect," she said with a quiet sigh.

"So I haven't bored you to death and completely turned you off to the idea of dating?"

She shook her head against his body.

"The exact opposite actually. I'm having a really great time, Rick. It's kind of terrifying," Kate admitted, stopping for a moment to look up at him.

"Having a great time is terrifying?"

"In my experience, yes. It usually means things are too good to be true."

"Well, I'm here and I'm not going anywhere unless you ask me too. And you're right, maybe it is a little terrifying," he said, pulling her back to him.

"Glad to know I'm right. I usually am," she teased and turning her face into his shoulder.

"Uh huh. I guess we'll have to see about that."

They walked along the streets, joking and laughing with each other. Teasing one another soon turned into a game of people watching and creating back stories for the strangers they passed.

She was having fun even though the wind was chilling her even more, now that they had finished their hot chocolates.

Before long, she was starting to lose feeling in her toes.

"You stopped walking."

"I stopped walking," she repeated with a smirk.

He eyed her for a second before she made the split second decision to do something she wanted to do all night. Before she could over think it, she turned into his body and pulled his lips down to hers.

The way his mouth molded to hers heated her body in ways that helped her forget. Forget about the fact that she was freezing. Forget about the fact that she was standing in the middle of a crowded sidewalk.

What mattered was she was kissing Rick and pressing into him. She didn't want it to end.

She felt dizzy.

After pulling away for a necessary breath of air, Kate touched her lips in shock with the taste of his kiss still on her tongue. Craving it once again, she leaned back into his body and feathered another kiss onto his lips, before she whispered onto his skin.

"Take me home, Rick."

* * *

Opening the door to his loft, Rick was surprised to be met with silence. After checking in with Alexis earlier, he assumed that Liam would've still been going strong and yet there was no sign of either of them.

"Looks like Liam found your chocolate stash," Kate observed, pointing out the trail of foil wrappers littering the space.

"I'm sorry about that. I think Alexis may have been bribing him with candy."

"Or Liam found it himself. He has a sixth sense about finding chocolate. Can sniff it out a mile away," she said, giggling and picking up the mess.

"You don't have to do that. You're a guest."

"But he's my kid. It's not your job to pick up after him."

He moved next to her and helped pick up the mess as she huffed at him.

"I'm not going to let you clean it up while I just stand here," he said, smirking as they threw away the trash and looking in the refrigerator. "Lucky for us, he didn't eat all of the good stuff." Kate raised an eyebrow at him and moved to see what he had. "My favorite chocolate. I special order it from Europe."

"Fancy doctor needs his fancy chocolate," she teased.

"If you're not careful, I won't share."

"I'm sorry. Handsome doctor needs his fancy chocolate?" she giggled.

"I prefer ruggedly handsome doctor, but I'll let that slide," he chuckled as he brought the chocolate to the countertop.

"And here I thought you didn't have an ego—"

"Try it and tell me that isn't the best chocolate you've had," Rick said, placing the chocolate in her mouth and then eating a piece himself.

A quiet moan escaped her mouth, followed by an adorable blush painting her cheeks.

"You win. I apologize for doubting you."

"That sound you made was all the apology I needed," he said, with a wink.

"Still worried about that ego."

"Oh really?"

"Mmhmm. You seem to like your ruggedly handsome self a lot."

"You know who I like more?" Rick asked as he met her eyes. "You."

He leaned forward and captured her mouth with the same intensity as the kiss on the street. Only this time, she was warm in his arms and tasted like rich chocolate. Pressing her up against the counter, he lifted her up as she wrapped her legs around his waist, a dizzy haze of hands and mouths more passionate then he could've hoped for.

"Darling? You're home—oh!" Martha said, walking into the kitchen as Kate pushed him off of her and hopped onto her feet.

"Mother, I didn't realize you were home," Rick replied through clenched teeth.

"I didn't know you lived with your mom!" Kate hissed from behind him.

"Well yes, I came home earlier from my party than I had planned. I didn't _interrupt_ anything, did I?"

Rick glared at his mother for a second before turning back to his mortified date.

"Kate Beckett, this is my mother, Martha Rodgers."

"Oh Katherine, it's so nice to finally meet you! Richard has been talking about you for days!" She beamed while Kate brought her bottom lip between her teeth.

He had already picked up on her nervous habit and while she might be doing it without realizing it, it was beyond sexy.

"Nice to meet you Ms. Rodgers."

"Oh please! Call me Martha."

"Okay. Nice to meet you, Martha."

"Well I'll leave you two kids to get back to whatever I walked in on. Ta Ta," she said with a smirk and a little wave before walking upstairs for the night.

"Well that was—"

Embarrassing.

"I'm sorry. I forgot to mention that my mother lives with us. Long story short, she has bad luck with men."

"I can relate—present company excluded," she said, cupping his cheek in her palm. "Not the way I imagined meeting your mom, but it was probably a good thing she stopped us. And I'm glad it was her instead of Liam."

"Or Alexis."

"Right. So we've obviously confirmed that we have great chemistry." She traced her hand down his arm and then tilted back to look in his eyes.

"Excellent."

"But—"

"There's a but?" he asked, confusion laced in his words.

"I just need some time. Things are moving really fast and it's amazing. We just need to—" Her voice lost all strength and she turned to look at her feet.

"Hey, hey. I don't want to do anything you're not comfortable with yet. I like you too much for that."

He could wait for her. There wasn't any reason they had to jump in bed tonight. Hell, he would've never expected to have the chance to make out with her. Though he wouldn't object to doing that again soon.

"You may be the perfect man."

"Perfection is in the eye of the beholder," he said with a short chuckle as she leaned up to give him a peck on the cheek.

"Let's go find our kids."

He reached for her hand and led her through the loft back toward his office.

Sure enough, his little girl and her son were passed out on the couch, curled up against one another. Rick turned to look at Kate and she had the same glassy-eyed expression that he was sure he had.

Maybe it was all kinds of perfect.

* * *

_**TBC**_

_Thank you so much for reading! I would love hear what you think :)_

_Castle Winter Ficathon Word Count- accomplished! (but the story is not complete)_


	7. Chapter 7

_A/N: Everyone that supported me and who said lovely words this past week. You kept me writing. Thank you. _

_Jo- thanks for the extra encouragement I needed with this one._

_Disclaimer: I do not own Castle or any of its dialogue, but all mistakes are mine._

* * *

**_Medical Attention_**

* * *

Castle's S1 AU Based on a tumblr prompt from anon: Castle's a doctor, a friend of Lanie's. AU Caskett meeting at Lanie's birthday. *Castle Winter Hiatus 2014 Ficathon Entry*

* * *

**Chapter 7**

_Knock, knock._

_Knock, knock._

The pounding in her head had become so loud that she could swear the walls were rattling. Kate threw another pillow over her face and burrowed further into her blanket.

_Knock, knock._

"Kate?"

Damn. The pounding wasn't in her head; it was someone at the door.

Rick.

She rolled off of her couch and trudged toward the incessant noise. For a brief second before opening the door, her brain registered that she looked like a disaster but she was too miserable to care.

"Hey," she croaked, attempting a smile.

"Kate? Are you okay?"

They hadn't really talked in the last couple days. She wasn't deliberately avoiding him, but she hated asking people for help when she was sick.

Since their first date a couple weeks ago, they had seen each other on a fairly regular basis, either hanging out with Liam or managing to find a couple hours to just themselves. They were still taking things slowly, but she enjoyed being around him.

Enjoyed being around him when she was _healthy_. He'd had to basically take her kicking and screaming to get her cast off of her wrist, because she told him there wasn't any need for him to be there. Yet, he'd insisted, still pretending that he was somehow her doctor.

She shook herself out of her thoughts and looked into Rick's concerned eyes. Motioning him inside, Kate flopped herself back onto the couch.

"I know. I'm sorry, Rick. I've been sick."

"You texted me that you were fine, but just busy with work," he said, his tone more understanding than she deserved.

"I didn't want you to worry."

He walked over to sit down and she leaned into his body.

"Well I'm not worried now, I'm just confused. Why wouldn't you just tell me you were sick?"

Kate shrugged and picked at the stray thread on her sweatshirt.

"Because I didn't want to bother you. I know you have your fair share of sick kids on a daily basis."

"And you thought I wouldn't want to take care of my sick girlfriend?"

She sat up straight as her eyes widened.

"Girlfriend?"

"Really? You want to discuss titles while you have saltine crackers crushed up in your hair and snot on your sweatshirt?" he asked with a smirk.

"Low blow, Dr. Rodgers. Low blow," she said with a laugh that turned into a coughing fit. "I appreciate you stopping by Rick, but I really just want to go back to sleep before Liam wakes up from his nap."

Now he was the one who looked at her with a stunned expression.

"You're telling me that you've been taking care of him this entire time you've been sick?"

Kate nodded, avoiding his eyes.

"Yeah, my dad is away at a conference. Luckily Liam's been an angel…"

Rick smoothed down her hair and tucked it behind her ears before she stood up and paced toward the kitchen. Her throat was on fire, maybe some water would help.

"Kate, let me watch him. Go to bed. Get some decent rest and don't worry—"

No. It was one thing for Rick to be around Liam when they were eating pizza or having movie night. It was another thing for them to be spending one-on-one time.

"Rick, I can't ask you to watch him," she said, shaking her head. She didn't want to upset him, but this wasn't his responsibility. Liam depended on her and her alone.

"You're not asking me. I'm insisting. Now go."

Kate drank a small sip of water and tried to hold back the wince from the pain.

"Really. I'm fine," she insisted, but he moved closer to her.

"Kate, you're burning up. You're clearly not fine. Please let me take care of you—let me help."

His thumb traced the sensitive skin underneath her tired eyes as his hand cupped her cheek. All of the fight drained from her frail frame and she sank into his arms.

"Maybe a little nap—" she said between yawns

"It will make you feel better. Have you taken anything for your fever?"

"No, not yet. I was hoping to sleep it off when you showed up."

Her voice was barely audible as she just muttered into the fabric of his shirt. His scent was comforting. God, what was this man doing to her. She never let anyone take care of her, but now she was cuddling up into his arms and agreeing to let him take care of her.

This was the recipe for disaster.

"You said you've been sick for a couple days."

He rubbed his strong hands along the column of her spine, relaxing and comforting at the same time. There was really no use trying to rationalize her lack of care for her own well being to a doctor. Rick saw right through it.

"Well—"

Kate tried to laugh it off, but she found herself being led back to her room.

"Get in bed and I'll bring you something to take from your medicine cabinet."

She smirked as she pulled back the blankets and crawled into bed.

"This wasn't how I pictured you getting me in bed for the first time, Rick."

"At least your sense of humor is still intact," he whispered, leaning over to kiss her forehead. "Now get some rest."

The feeling of his warmth against her skin eased her concerns. Maybe it wouldn't be the worst thing. Rick wasn't a stranger to Liam. They would be fine if she just rested her eyes.

"Mmmhmm… Maybe… a little… nap…"

* * *

Rick walked out of Kate's room and quietly clicked her door shut. He had known that she was self sufficient and stubborn, but he hadn't realized she was _this_ stubborn.

It was horribly apparent that she had been feeling miserable for a while, yet, she hadn't mentioned being sick at all when they talked last. The only reason he had shown up tonight was due to the fact that her last text message to him was utterly incoherent.

A few weeks had passed since their first official date, and as Kate had suggested, things were moving very slowly. He didn't mind, really he didn't. Moving slowly with Kate Beckett was better than any fly-by-night-jumping-into-it-head-first sort of relationship with anybody else.

While the relationship might be moving slowing, his feelings most definitely were not. He was falling for her fast, and on the days that they were both too busy to speak he had found himself missing her, longing to hear her voice.

He knew it was crazy to be so enamored with a woman after protecting his heart for so long, but logic wasn't a factor in matters of the heart.

Kate Beckett was special.

Stubborn as hell, but special.

After he could hear her breathing even out from outside of her room, he knew she had finally given into exhaustion and fell asleep. Gathering up painkillers and cold medicine from her medicine cabinet, he brought all the supplies to her kitchen counter to look for a tray and a bottle of water. He didn't want to wake her right away, but she would need to take something sooner rather than later.

"Mommy?"

Oh.

It looked like someone had woken up from his nap. Rick turned around to smile at Kate's son.

"Hey, Liam."

"Rick?" he asked, sleep still present in his voice.

The boy looked up at him as tears filled his eyes. Rick assessed his reaction for a moment and watched as Liam wiped his eyes.

"Is it okay that I hang out with you while your mom gets some sleep?"

Liam's glassy expression washed away and he nodded.

"She's sick," he sniffed, walking over to Rick's side. He nodded and bent down to be eye level with Liam.

"Yeah she is. So we're going to let her sleep for a little bit," he explained.

"Okay. Can we play?" Liam asked, reaching for Rick's hand to lead him to his bedroom.

"Of course! We can play with your cars or Legos. Whatever you'd like to do."

Rick spent every day surrounded by children. Yet, with Liam, he was nervous. If Liam didn't trust him, the possibility of things ever working out with Kate would be impossible. Not even that, Rick had so much fun being around him, that he was growing quite attached.

"But you came over to see my mom?" Liam asked, as he started digging through the toys in his room.

"I did at first," Rick said, sitting down on the floor and pulling out the box of Legos. He _loved_ Legos. Perhaps his love of toys was why he got along with children so well. Liam noticed that he was started to build and he soon joined Rick on the project.

"We can build a castle!" Liam shouted.

"Sure, Buddy. We can build a castle."

Things were easy, until…

"Do you really like my mom?" Liam asked, wide-eyed.

Questions.

Liam loved to interrogate. Rick smiled at the little boy and ruffled his hair a bit.

"I do."

"You're not going to leave?" Liam's voice started to get quieter, staring at the bricks instead of at Rick.

"Um—I don't plan on it. Not unless you or your mom asks me to." He didn't want to say something that would give Liam the wrong impression and with Kate nowhere to be seen. Rick wanted to be careful not to misspeak. Liam was a smart kid, but Rick could tell there was something that was bothering him.

He took a moment to work on building the castle, but then stopped to focus all of his attention on Rick.

"Are you going to be my daddy?"

Rick's jaw dropped.

* * *

Kate rolled over in her mound of blankets, still groggy. She remembered Rick waking her up at one point to make her take some medicine, but she couldn't remember when that had been. All sense of time was lost, but the grumbling in her stomach let her know that it had been hours.

She still felt under the weather, but with the combination of the medicine and rest Kate at least was able to sit up without feeling like she would topple over. Pushing the rest of the covers off of her body, she was about to venture out of her room to find Rick and Liam when she found the note on her nightstand that he had left her.

'_If you're feeling better, steam from a shower will help with your congestion.'_

She smiled down at the note and listened for a moment.

Silence.

Well if Liam wasn't screaming, a hot shower did sound amazing and if a _doctor_ said it would help, who was she to argue?

* * *

Rick was a genius.

The shower was heavenly. After throwing on a clean pair of leggings and simple white v-neck t-shirt, she was finally feeling like herself again.

Now it was time to find the boys.

The family room and kitchen were both deserted but she glanced at the clock on the stove and was shocked to find it was already ten o'clock at night. Rick had been here for over five hours. She felt a small pang of guilt at wasting time showering while he was watching her son. He shouldn't have had to be here this long.

A light from Liam's room lit up the already dark apartment and she could hear her son's giggles fill the silence.

At least he was happy.

"Kate? Hi! I know it's late, but your little boy seems to have inherited his stubbornness from his mother."

Rick looked panicked when Kate walked into the room. He didn't understand Liam's adversity to having a usual bedtime.

She smirked at him as she moved farther into the room, bending over to kiss Liam on the top of his head before wrapping herself into Rick's body. He stiffened in response to her body's closeness, but relaxed when she laid her head against his shoulder. Kate hadn't been this overly affectionate before around Liam, but maybe she was being too cautious.

"I don't care." Brushing a kiss onto the crease of his neck, she closed her eyes as his scent wrapped around her. "Thank you."

His cool hand pressed against her forehead as her eyes fluttered open.

"Feels like your fever broke."

"Mommy, we had fun!" Liam shouted, wrapping his tiny arms around her body crawling into her lap with poor Rick at the bottom of the pile up.

"Mmhmm. I'm glad you did." She turned to look up at Rick and whispered into his embrace. "I feel a lot better."

Liam jumped out of her lap and ran back toward his toys.

"And here you were trying to push me away," he teased.

"He's a handful, Rick," she muttered as she watched Liam pretend that the Hulk was attacking Spiderman.

They both laughed at his superhero show down.

"So I've witnessed on several occasions, including tonight. You missed his marching and chanting from just a couple minutes ago."

"You were chanting?" she called over to Liam.

Her son nodded without looking up from his toys.

"Uh huh. Rick told me it was bedtime."

"And he was right—"

"So I told him I wasn't tired," Liam explained and she turned back to Rick as he looked slightly defeated by the three year old.

"Why do I feel like there's more to the story? Show me what you did when Rick said it was time for bed."

He dropped his toys and stomped in a circle with his arms folded.

"Not tired! Not tired! Not tired!" he pouted as he reenacted his temper tantrum. She bit her bottom lip to hold in her laugh, this was exactly what she thought had happened.

His nightly routine.

It was nice to know that Liam behaved the same for Rick as he would have for her.

"You're not mad?" Rick asked, as they watched Liam turned back to his action figures.

"Mad? At you? Of course not! It's nice to know that you're not perfect. I would've been jealous if he reacted differently."

"Far from perfect. But he's still not in bed."

"Not the first time and it won't be the last," Kate explained, scooting out of his lap before she fell back asleep from his warmth.

"I also promised I'd read to him."

She laughed and raised her eyebrow at him.

"I love story time," Kate whispered and kissed his check before standing up to scoop Liam into his bed. "Bedtime for real this time."

"But Mommy!"

"Rick will read us a story and then you're going to sleep," Kate said, pulling the covers over her baby boy.

"I'm reading you a story too?"

"Sure," she said with a smirk. "I love bedtime stories."

* * *

Liam actually fell asleep during the first half of the book.

That _never_ happened, but she couldn't say she blamed him; Rick's deep hypnotic tone relaxed even her. She could listen to Rick read out loud for hours, strong and soothing.

Feathering a kiss against his hair, Kate tucked Liam in tighter under his blankets before she slid her hand into Rick's and led him out of the room.

"I don't think I can thank you enough. I actually feel human again."

"You don't need to thank me, Kate. I'm glad I was able to help you. You know, you can ask me to help more often," he said, wrapping an arm around her shoulder as they walked back into the family room.

"I'm not dating you so you can watch my son."

His help today was more than appreciated, but she couldn't get used to this. This wasn't his responsibility.

"No, but you are dating me. And I know that you and Liam are a package deal," he said, squeezing her tighter.

She was so touched by his devotion today. They had only been together for a month.

One month and she already feared about the idea of being without him. In the back of her mind, she had a nagging feeling this was too much too soon. Even though they were taking things slowly, she was growing emotionally attached and so was Liam.

Yet, when she watched Rick read to Liam, her heart fluttered faster than ever before.

"You are adorable with him, you know? He's never had someone like you in his life," she admitted.

"He was fun today, although he loved asking me questions. He's very protective of you."

"Oh really? Should I be concerned about what he was saying?"

"He asked if I liked you," Rick said, grinning down at her. He moved to stand behind her, she was unsure of why until she felt his hand begin to massage her shoulders.

Well this was new.

"And you said?" she teased while trying to turn back to look at him, raising her eyebrow.

"I said 'of course'."

"Did he ask anything else?"

This felt amazing.

"Yes."

"Okay?" she asked, almost letting a moan out of her mouth. He lightly brushed his finger tips down her arm and grabbed one of her hands. She could tell he was avoiding answering. "Rick?"

His eyes dropped down at their intertwined fingers.

"He asked if I was going to leave you guys and when I told him no—he asked if I was going to be his dad."

Kate's hand pulled out from his and flew to cover her mouth. This was exactly what she had been afraid of.

Damn.

What was she supposed to do now?

* * *

_**TBC**_

_Thank you so much for reading! I would love to hear from you. :)_


	8. Chapter 8

_A/N: To all the lovely guest reviews that I can't personally thank...THANK YOU! _

_Jo- thanks to super!beta_

_Disclaimer: I do not own Castle or any of its dialogue, but all mistakes are mine._

* * *

**_Medical Attention_**

* * *

Castle's S1 AU Based on a tumblr prompt from anon: Castle's a doctor, a friend of Lanie's. AU Caskett meeting at Lanie's birthday. *Castle Winter Hiatus 2014 Ficathon Entry*

* * *

**Chapter 8**

The silence hung in the air and Kate closed her eyes.

This was why she kept people at arm's length. This was exactly what she had been afraid of. Her thoughts were spiraling, bringing the dull pain of her headache back to the forefront.

How she could fix this?

She was trying to piece together a plan when she felt Rick's hand press against the small of her back. Her eyes flew open, his touch bringing her back to the present.

"He asked you what?" she asked in a hushed tone, all of the strength pulled from her body.

"He asked if I was going to leave—"

"Rick—"

"He asked if I was going to be his dad," he admitted, reaching for her hand.

Kate turned to face him, the panic she felt ingrained in every inch of her expression.

"And you said what, exactly?"

He squeezed his eyes tightly closed for a second and then opened them, meeting hers.

"Kate, I didn't know what to say. It's not my place to say anything," he whispered, and she nodded, appreciating the fact he was keeping his voice low.

The last thing they needed was for Liam to wake up and find them discussing his curiosity.

"We've only been dating for a month," Kate said with a nod.

"Correct."

Watching as he croaked out a response, it dawned on her that he wasn't just concerned about Liam's questions, but he also seemed nervous about her reaction.

"And we were supposed to be taking this slow."

"I know."

Another whisper and he closed his eyes again, avoiding her stare. She took a deep breath and sank into his arms. He stiffened at first, but then seemed to relax to pull her closer.

Maybe she was growing, or maybe she was just so desperate for companionship, but she didn't want to push him away.

"Does it feel like we're taking this slow?" she asked, muffled against his shirt.

"In some ways, yes—"

She turned up to meet his eyes as he brushed his hand down her back. Rick gave her a small hesitant smile when she finally found her voice again.

"But in other ways—" Kate's lips stretched into a grin and his hesitation seemed to switch to a sigh of relief.

"You feel it too?"

Squeezing his forearm, Kate moved out of his embrace. The nervous energy that buzzed through her veins made it impossible to keep stationary.

One month.

One month and he was already breaking down the wall that protected her from getting hurt.

Protected her son.

She turned back to him, keeping a safer distance between them.

"I do, and it's scaring the _hell_ out of me, Rick," she said, scrubbing her hands down her face. He closed the space that she created in an instant and pulled her hands away to cup her check with his palm.

"Hey—hey, I can take a step back if you want me to," he said, caressing her skin with such care that she canted into his touch.

"I don't—what if I don't want you to?" she murmured.

He had asked her to trust him on several occasions and not once had he let her down. She couldn't protect her heart anymore because whether she cared to admit it or not, Rick had already found his way there.

"Kate?"

"This is probably incredibly stupid—but I don't want things to change. I like how things are going."

The chill in the air brought goose bumps down her arms which Rick remedied by running his hands down the exposed skin, heating her with his touch.

"I do too, but Liam?"

"…Is my son and the most important thing in my life," she said, pulling one of his hands into her own and leading them to the couch.

"He's not going to stop asking questions."

Rick sat back on the cushions as she sat against the opposite side, bringing her legs to her chest.

"Nope, probably not. He hasn't stopped asking questions since he started talking," Kate said with a soft laugh.

"Tell me what I should tell him."

His eyes pleaded with her and she smiled nudging him with her foot trying to calm him down. Her brief overreaction apparently put him on edge.

"What did you tell him today?"

"I told him I wasn't planning on leaving unless you asked me to and then I distracted him with one of his toys," Rick said with a nervous laugh.

"And that worked?" she asked, raising her eyebrow.

"Surprisingly yes. He told me that I'm the best superhero player."

"Really? That's what he says about me!" she giggled, relaxing into the moment with him.

Someone to share these stories with… it was nice. Even more importantly, Rick genuinely seemed to care and enjoy spending time with Liam

"Well, looks like you better step up your game," he teased, pulling her in close and placing a kiss against her hair.

"Guess so," she said, yawning against his chest. If only she could curl up like this, his arms wrapped around her all night. Yet, the first night she had him in her bed, the last thing she'd want to do was sleep. Definitely a better idea for when she would be healthy.

"You should go back to bed. Call me tomorrow if you need anything—even if I'm at the office," Rick said, against the skin at her temple. Turning around to face him, she eyed him and ran her bottom lip between her teeth.

"How are you so perfect?"

"Far from it," he chuckled.

"You are. I'm not so easy to impress. You must be doing something right," she said with a smile, standing up and pulling him up with her to walk him out.

"You make it easy." Rick brought her into his arms once more and kissed her forehead. "Feel better," he said, with a tight squeeze before he turned toward the door.

"Rick?" she called as he was reaching for the handle.

"Yeah?" he asked, facing her again.

"If he asks you again—I trust you."

"Kate…"

She moved to stand next to the door and pull it open for him. Stretching up to be at eye level with him, Kate carded her fingers through the strands that rested against his forehead.

"Just don't walk away, Rick," she whispered into his ear before kissing his cheek. "And thank you."

* * *

He didn't walk into his loft until close to midnight and was surprised to find Alexis still awake sitting at the counter in the kitchen.

"How's Kate?" she asked, looking up from her textbook. He moved to stand behind her and squeezed her shoulders before he kissed the top of her head.

"Feeling better. Thanks for being so understanding when I called you."

Alexis leaned her head back to look up at him and she smiled.

"No problem. We can go out for pizza any time. You were helping out with Liam."

"I just didn't want you to think I was picking them over you."

Looking over her shoulder, he took grabbed her pencil and drew a smile onto her notes, earning him an eye roll from his daughter.

"Dad, I like Kate and Liam. You're not going to get any unnecessary teenage angst from me. Plus, it gave me more time to study for Chemistry."

"Thanks," he said, walking to the fridge to grab a bottle of water. "I'll make it up to you. I promise."

"You always do. Was the office busy today?"

Rick chuckled at her question.

"Of course. It's the beginning of February. I think every kid in the city besides you and Liam was in there today."

"There's always tomorrow," Alexis joked, closing up her text book.

"Drink extra orange juice," he said with a wink, as she walked over to give him a kiss on the cheek.

"Goodnight, Dad."

She gave him a hug and headed for the stairs.

"Sweet Dreams, Pumpkin."

* * *

After days of fighting off whatever cold and flu virus had its death grip on her, Kate finally felt back to her normal self by the time the weekend rolled around again. Rick stopped over at her place almost every night that week to either bring her dinner or to spend time hanging out on the couch after Liam went to bed.

Things were effortless with one another but anytime she stopped to actually think about how perfect they fit into each other's lives, a nervous feeling fluttered in her stomach.

Real life could never be this perfect.

Could it?

As much as she tried to keep the wall around her heart secure, Rick continually wound up within its barrier.

"Hi," she said as she greeted him with a kiss.

"Hey, are you ready?" Rick asked, as Kate let him into the apartment.

"Yeah, I just have to get Liam's coat on and put on my shoes."

"Here, Buddy. Let me help," he said reaching for the jacket.

Kate smiled as she watched Rick getting Liam ready to go outside. Liam hadn't mentioned anything about Rick being his dad since the initial questioning, but she could tell her son was still thinking about it. Whenever Rick was over, Liam would want to sit by him or he would give him a hug anytime he would leave. Just little subtle things, but for a little boy that was such a mama's boy; this was a huge clue to what was going on in her son's mind.

"This is gonna be fun!" Liam exclaimed.

"Have you ever gone ice skating before?" Rick asked as he zipped up his coat.

"No. I was too little. Right, Mommy?"

Liam looked over at her for confirmation and she nodded with a smile.

"Yeah, last year you weren't quite ready, but I think you'll do okay now," she agreed.

"He'll do great. I taught Alexis when she was your age," Rick said, putting Liam's R2-D2 winter hat on.

"Really? Cool!"

With a smile Liam jumped off of the couch and ran toward the door.

"It's too bad Alexis is skiing for the weekend. It would've been fun to have her come along," Kate said, reaching for Liam's hand.

He turned back toward Rick and placed his other hand into his.

"Hold my hand too?" he asked looking up at Rick.

"Always."

He smiled down at Liam and when he looked back up Kate was grinning right at him. The idea of this man being so caring, so loving toward her son; it was completely overwhelming and terrifying at the same time. Yet the way he looked at them both…

It was more than she could've ever asked for.

"Thank you," she whispered as she leaned over to kiss his cheek while they waited for the elevator.

"For what?"

"For being you."

His lips turned into as smile that matched her own and he placed his mouth over hers in a quick, chaste kiss.

"Let's get going before it gets really crowded."

* * *

"Mommy! Look at me!" Liam giggled from across the rink. He only wanted Rick to teach him because he wanted to learn to skate just like Alexis had learned. She had felt a pang of jealousy that her son would choose Rick over her, but after seeing her boyfriend helping her son the feeling disappeared.

To any passer-by, Liam and Rick looked like they were having a father-son teaching moment.

She couldn't help the warmth that spread through her body at the sight of it.

It was adorable.

"I see, Baby! You're doing great," she called out.

Staying behind the pair, she snapped a couple pictures with her phone before she weaved through the other skaters to try and catch up. She was so solely focused on joining the boys that she didn't even notice the man who seemed to come from nowhere.

The crash was inevitable with no time to swerve out of his path.

As her body hit the ice, she could already tell she would have a nice sized bruise tomorrow.

"I'm sorry. I'm not the best on skates," the man said, pushing himself up and brushing the ice off of his pants, before his jaw dropped. "Kate?"

Oh no.

_Seriously_, what were the odds?

"Scott. Hi."

Of all the people she never wanted to run into again, it had to be the one man that made her blood run cold.

Liam's father.

"I didn't mean to—"

"It's fine," she said picking herself up off of the ice. "No harm. I'll see you—"

"Kate? Are you okay?" Rick asked, skating over to her holding Liam's hand. Liam moved to hug her leg.

"Mommy? You fell. I didn't even fall," he mused.

"Is that him? Mine?" Scott asked with wide eyes, as his sight focused on Liam.

Her heart dropped.

His? Biologically?

Yes.

But _his_? There was nothing on this planet that made Liam his. He made that choice long ago when he had slammed the door in her face when she told him she was pregnant.

He made the choice long ago when she sent him a letter with a picture after he was born and there was no reply.

Liam didn't even have a father listed on his birth certificate.

He was in no way _his…_

Kate took a cue from Scott's playbook and turned her back on him to face the men in her life that mattered.

"Hey, Buddy, I'm fine. You're apparently a much better skater than I am," she joked with her son as Rick eyed her and Scott.

"Kate?"

"Babe. I'm okay. I may just need a little massage later," she teased, leaning up to place a heated kiss onto Rick's confused lips.

_Babe?_

She knew she was laying it on a little thick, but it was almost like she was having an out of body experience. Feeling Scott's eyes burn against her skin was making her nearly insane.

Rick played along and didn't out her unusual behavior, but the grip of his hand in hers tightened when Scott cleared his throat.

"Kate? Is this my son?"

Her jaw clenched at his use of the word and her eyes met Rick's with a silent plea.

Understanding washed over Rick's face regarding the situation and he placed a kiss against her cheek. With her back still facing Scott, Rick glared at the man and pulled Liam closer to his side.

"I'll take him to get some hot chocolate," he whispered and she mouthed her thank you before turning back toward her ex.

"Who is that with my son?"

"Frankly you have no right to know who is spending time with me or my son," she spat.

Kate skated toward the edge of the rink, hoping that he would take the hint, but she could sense him following her.

"What if I say I made a mistake, Kate?" Scott asked and she spun around nearly losing her balance again. "I have a right to know my son."

"You had a right when I told you I was pregnant," she said, her eyes glaring at him. "You even had a right when I tried to contact you after I had him. You had a chance to even legally be his father. The only contact you had was to deny paternity. Oh—and the _ever_ important contact from your attorney to sign away your legal parental rights."

She couldn't believe that not only was she having this argument with him, but having it as happy families glided by them. It was almost too much to take.

"People make mistakes, Kate."

"You're right. They do. Our relationship—if you'd even call it that, was a mistake. The only positive was that it gave me the most important person in my life."

"He's so cute."

Was he still honestly pressing the issue?

"Scott, you had over three years. Three years. And just because you randomly see us—_now _you decide after _seeing_ him that you want to know him?"

She couldn't believe this. For a whole year she had prayed that he would want something to do with her son. All she wanted was for Liam to have his father in his life, but she came to terms with the fact that it was all for the best.

Liam was better off without him. And now with Rick? He finally had someone besides her dad and the boys to be a positive male influence in his life.

"Maybe it was fate?"

Fate. If there was ever a time to hate that word, it would be now.

"No Scott. Not fate. This—_this _was the mistake."

She motioned between the two of them and tried to turn away as he reached for her arm.

"I deserve a chance to get to know him."

Shrugging her arm from his grip, she moved to distance herself from him further.

"What? Until you decide he's no longer cute and not worth your time anymore," she snapped.

"I've changed."

"Goodbye, Scott. Please leave us alone."

She turned away and skated off to find the boys near the concession stand huddling over their hot chocolates.

"Mommy! Rick let me get a big one!"

"Well that was very nice of him," she said, forcing a smile on her face for Liam's sake. In reality, her stomach was in knots and she was doing everything in her power to keep her emotions in check.

"I got you one too," Rick said, handing the cup to her and squeezing her free hand. "Do you want to leave?"

"Could we? I just—"

She shook her head as her voice broke off midsentence.

"Hey, don't worry about it."

"Can we get lunch?" Liam asked, looking up at both adults.

"That sounds perfect. What would you like to eat, Liam? My treat," Rick said, bending over to look Liam in the eye.

"Cheeseburger and French fries!"

Kate laughed. This kid could eat that every meal of every day.

"A boy after my own heart."

"Remy's it is," Kate said, lacing her fingers through Rick's.

He looked at her with concern, but she gave him a tight smile and leaned into his side.

"Do you want to talk about it?" he asked as he pressed a kiss against her temple.

"Later. Not the time."

* * *

"Thanks for today," she whispered, shutting Liam's bedroom door behind them.

The day had been perfect once they left the ice rink.

After they ate lunch at Remy's, Rick had taken them to the museum to explore and look at the dinosaur bones. He told Liam it was his favorite thing to do with Alexis when she was little.

Liam had loved it and begged for Rick to bring him back again soon.

Kate had made dinner at her apartment and Liam had fallen asleep cuddled between them on the couch while they watched TV.

She tried to bury all the worry she felt about seeing Scott today and for the most part she managed to convince herself that it didn't matter.

If anything, it only solidified in her mind how different Rick was.

How_ right_ he was for her…

"No need to thank me. I should thank you for letting me spend the day with you two."

"Rick, I mean it. Thank you for everything—and not just today." She leaned up to fold herself into his arms and found his mouth with a hard press of her lips. "You keep showing up."

"And I always will." He kissed her once more, but stepped back when she tried to deepen it. "Do you want to talk about what happened earlier?"

"Yes, but not now."

He nodded and she brushed her fingers along the stubble on his jaw. Rick gave her a quick peck against her check and squeezed the hand that was resting against his hip.

"I should go—" he said pulling away, but she stopped him from going far.

"Stay."

He looked at her with a stunned expression, but she met his hesitation with wide eyed certainty.

"Kate?"

"Stay," she repeated, her voice stronger than before.

Running her hands through his hair, she brought his face down, meeting his lips in a heated kiss.

A moan broke the silence as Rick's hands played with the hem of her shirt, pulling her closer.

"Tell me to stop," he warned.

"I don't want you to stop."

She was pressed against the warmth of his body as she rolled her hips into his.

"_Kate,_" he groaned against her mouth, a prayer against her lips as his hands moved to worship the skin along her waistband of her pants.

"Bed. _Now_," she gasped, and as he lifted her up she wrapped her legs around him so he could carry her to her room.

There was no reason to deny it.

She wanted Rick and couldn't wait any longer to show him how much.

* * *

_**TBC**_

_Thank you so much for reading! I would love to hear from you :)_


	9. Chapter 9

_A/N: Thanks to everyone reading and being super supportive of this story. Can't thank you enough!_

_Jo- thanks to super!beta_

_Disclaimer: I do not own Castle or any of its dialogue, but all mistakes are mine._

**_._**

* * *

**_Medical Attention_**

* * *

Castle's S1 AU Based on a tumblr prompt from anon: Castle's a doctor, a friend of Lanie's. AU Caskett meeting at Lanie's birthday. *Castle Winter Hiatus 2014 Ficathon Entry*

* * *

_**Chapter 9**_

Pressing against his bare skin, Kate looked up him with a lazy grin. Their sweaty, sated bodies were still intertwined after their last frantic round, but it was comforting.

Perfect.

It was safe to say that they were done with waiting.

He would have waited forever to be able to be with Kate, but when she asked him to stay, there was no going back.

"Why did we wait this long?" Kate murmured against his chest.

"You wanted to take it slow."

"I was a fool."

"Don't call my girlfriend a fool," he said, chuckling and pulling her closer.

"We're really good together. I mean—really, _really_ good together. Like other people should be jealous how good," she rambled, in a daze.

"We are and you're sure about this? Right? No regrets?"

He brushed his hand lightly along her arm, leaving goose bumps in its wake.

"Not one."

"Good. Me either," he whispered into her ear and placed a kiss against the shell.

They stayed silent, just listening to each other's heartbeat and breathing lulling themselves to sleep. When he was about to succumb to sleep, his eyes shot open to find Kate cuddled up against him.

"Do you want me to leave?"

Her eyes met his in confusion and she sat up, pulling the sheet around her body.

"What? Why?"

He propped himself up, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear and gave her a small smile.

"Your extra curious son? Don't you think Liam will ask questions…"

Kate leaned back into his body and met his lips with a quick kiss.

"If he does, we'll figure them out together. I want you here with us," she whispered against his lips, but he held her back from deepening a kiss. Gently pushing back her shoulder, he cupped her face with both of his hands.

He needed her to look at him, to see how serious he was.

"You know this is different, right?"

"What are you talking about?" Kate asked, confusion washed over her expression.

"Whatever happened with him—seeing _him_? That's not why you needed me with you tonight, right?"

Kate sat up straight, moving out of his arms.

"Rick? Are you asking if I used you because of my ex?"

Her voice was soft and she looked away from him.

He was an idiot. His gorgeous girlfriend was in bed with him, in his arms and he had to bring up her ex.

What was wrong with him?

"Not—no, but I mean-"

This was _not_ coming out the way he wanted it to. No wonder he hadn't had a relationship recently, he was horrible at it.

Before he could ramble himself further into a hole, Kate reached up to hold his face and planted a firm kiss against his lips.

"You are nothing like him, Rick. You are the exact opposite of _him_," she said with the warmth of her breath washing over his skin. "All that happened by seeing Scott today was to confirm what an amazing man you are. Confirmed that my fears of a relationship were based on thinking everyone would be like him. _You_, Richard Rodgers, are the best thing to come into my life since Liam was born."

He looked down at her face in complete awe of her words, not even a trace of hesitation. The glow of the moon light filtered through the curtains in her bedroom and washed against her body.

She was gorgeous like this.

And in that moment, he _knew_.

Sweeping the hair away from her eyes, he traced his hand against the jut of her cheekbone and leaned forward to press his lips against her again.

"Kate, I lo—"

She nodded, but brushed her fingertips against his mouth so the words wouldn't be spoken.

A fleeting moment of panic and regret were wiped clear when she nuzzled back against his body and brushed a kiss onto his chest.

"I know. Me too," she whispered against his skin.

Maybe she wasn't ready to hear it yet, but he was content knowing that they both felt it.

* * *

She woke up to the feeling of the sun warming her skin and she shot up in bed.

What time was it?

It was a Sunday morning, but the last time she woke up naturally from the sun shining, Liam hadn't been conceived yet.

Was she in a parallel universe?

Looking over at her side, she found a note lying on the night stand.

'_You may want to put some clothes on'_

Shaking her head with a laugh, she hurried out of bed to throw on a pair of leggings and a sweatshirt. Just as she was pulling her short brown hair into the closest thing to a ponytail she could get, Rick and Liam walked into the room with a tray of food.

Thank God she had woken up when she did.

"You found my note?" Rick asked with a smirk.

"Luckily," she teased, rolling her eyes. "What is all of this?"

"We made you breakfast, Mommy!" Liam beamed, running over and jumping on the bed.

"And what's wrong with our perfectly acceptable table?"

"Breakfast in bed is far more fun," Rick said.

Looking at Rick standing there with a beautiful spread of food, she laughed at how lucky she was to have him. He almost told her how he felt last night and even though she knew she felt the same way-

The words had made her panic.

Fairy tales didn't exist, but with Rick, each day he was proving her wrong.

Maybe the words wouldn't so scary after all.

"Oh is it, now."

"Uh huh! That's what Rick said."

She smiled at her son and bit back a laugh.

"I see. So what did you make?" she asked, crawling next to Liam as Rick set down the tray and joined them.

"Pancakes!"

"When did you learn to cook?" she teased Liam and he giggled.

"_Mommy!_ Rick did it. I watched."

"Hey—don't sell yourself short, Buddy. You were a great assistant!"

"Well it all looks delicious. Thanks to the chef and his assistant," she said, tickling Liam's side. "Now let's eat before it gets cold."

* * *

After breakfast, she followed Rick into the kitchen to clean up while Liam went into his room to play. Clearing the tray into the sink, she grabbed his wrist as he started reaching for the dish soap.

"You made me breakfast. I can wash the dishes," she said, swatting him away before he tried again.

"What if I said I wanted to help?" he asked, placing the tray onto the countertop.

"You've done enough already. Those pancakes were incredible."

She chewed onto her bottom lip and turned back to the sink to fill up the basin.

"Mmhmm. Why don't you just ask me?" Rick asked, turning her back to face him. He raised his eyebrow at her and she knew exactly what he meant.

Even though she knew, she didn't want to ask him. She didn't want to act like she didn't trust him.

"Ask you what?"

Her tone gave her away, she knew it.

_This_ was why she was a cop and not an actress.

"Your eyes are basically screaming it. You want to know what Liam and I talked about while you were sleeping."

Busted.

"I do not—I wouldn't—"

"Kate—"

She laughed and lifted her hands in defeat. Pacing away from him, she turned back to him while gnawing on her lip.

Yes, she was nervous, even though she knew she didn't have a reason to be.

"Okay, you're right! You were with him all morning. There's no way he didn't ask you questions."

"Liam was being Liam," he explained, meeting her on the other side of the breakfast bar.

"So I'm assuming he asked why you were here."

"He did and I told him to make you breakfast," he said, nodding.

She scoffed at his explanation.

"And he dropped it?"

"Of course not," he said, pulling her into his arms with a laugh. "He asked if I stayed the night because mommies and daddies usually sleep in the same bed."

Shit.

"_Seriously._ You're waiting 'til _now_ to tell me this?" she asked, her eyes wide. Rick ran his hands down both of her arms. He was smart enough to know that she was freaking out.

"Well I couldn't exactly mention it when he was eating breakfast with us," he whispered, his eyes darting toward Liam's room, before turning back to look at her.

"What did you say?"

"I let him know that I did stay over—"

"He's pretty perceptive, Rick. I think he could tell that on his own."

"I told him I'm not his dad—" he continued and her eyes shut.

It was the truth, but hearing him say it felt like a punch to her stomach even though she had no right to feel that way. What was she doing to Liam?

"Rick, I'm sorry you—" she cut him off, but he shook his head to continue.

"—yet. I said I wasn't his dad, yet. But maybe one day."

Rick's lips quirked up when he noticed her obviously stunned expression.

"Wait. What?"

Her mind raced with all the implications of his words.

One day.

She felt him shake her arm before she realized she was sitting there with her jaw open for probably longer than necessary.

"I'm sorry if I was completely out of line. Hell, I'm sure I was, but in that moment—he was looking up at me with wide eyes, and I just wished… I just wanted things to be simple. I know growing up without a mom around hurt Alexis, and I just don't want that for Liam."

He wished that?

She was a detective and she could tell when someone was feeding her a line.

Rick was being completely sincere and her face broke out in a grin.

"Hey, I'm not mad," she said, tracing the soft skin underneath his eye with the pad of her thumb. "A little shocked, but definitely not mad."

"I know we're still figuring us out and stumbling through finding our way. And obviously it's way too soon to talk about the future. Giving him hope for something without talking to you about it was stupid," he rambled, lowering his eyes.

"Shh," she said, covering his lips with her fingertips. "He doesn't have a dad, he doesn't know what it _means_ to have a dad. But he has you, and I think that's great."

"But I shouldn't have—"

She silenced him with a soft kiss.

"If it makes any difference, I like the idea of one day too," she murmured against his lips.

"Maybe we'll get there… one day."

She brushed the hair from his forehead and then kissed his cheek.

"Yeah. Maybe, but for the time being—"

"We can just focus on living in the present," he said.

"I like that." Kate grinned up at him before pulling him into a tight hug. "And in the present, I need to wash the dishes."

"You wash and I'll dry?"

"Deal."

* * *

"So how's Dr. McDreamy?" Espo teased as she walked into the precinct on Monday.

She rolled her eyes at her partners as they met her at her desk.

"Why is your love life so lacking that you need to gossip about mine?" she asked, putting her bag into her desk drawer.

"I think he's a little jealous, Beckett. You've had more dates recently than he has," Ryan said, laughing in his partner's direction.

"Excuse me. I'll have you know that I had a date this weekend."

"Keep telling yourself that, Espo," Kate said with a smile.

"You have room to talk, Ryan."

Esposito pushed his shoulder and scoffed.

"Maybe, but I'm not bugging Beckett about her _boyfriend_."

"You guys really need some lives."

Laughing, she shuffled through the paperwork on her desk before another case dropped into their laps.

"So when are you going to let us hang out with your doctor? Properly vet him—see if he's good enough for you?" Espo asked.

"Maybe sometime soon I can see if Alexis can watch Liam and we can all go out one night. It'll give me a chance to meet one of your imaginary girlfriends, Espo," she teased.

"Oh, so not imaginary, Chica."

"Mmhmm, I'll let you know when."

"It'll give me a chance to have you all meet Jenny," Ryan added, as they all turned toward him in shock.

"Wait? Didn't you just say you didn't—who's Jenny?" Esposito asked as his eyes still wide.

"She's a girl I just started seeing, but unlike you Javi, I don't kiss and tell."

She smiled at her partner's jab at Esposito; it was about time.

"I'm happy for you, Ryan. I'll talk to Rick and we'll figure out a night."

She took a sip of the latte she had picked up after dropping Liam off at daycare and sighed. Not as good as the coffee that Rick made her, but it was definitely better than the precinct's sludge.

Looking around she noticed the bullpen was quiet for a Monday morning. Maybe they'd actually have a quiet day.

No murder was always a good thing.

Her thoughts jinxed the silence as her phone started to ring.

So much for a _slow_ day.

* * *

Dragging her exhausted body into her apartment, Kate was greeted by her dad. She was so lucky to have him around to help her when she had to stay at work. The daycare had extended hours, but nothing that would begin to cover her crazy schedule as a detective.

"Hey, Katie."

"Hey, Dad. How has he been?"

"Good. He already ate dinner and he fell asleep on the couch afterward. I moved him to his room, but he's probably not out for the night."

"Probably not, but a nap is never a bad thing," she said, smiling. "Thank you so much for getting him."

"Don't worry about it. I love spending time with him. It's never a problem. You know that," he said, as she hugged him and kissed his cheek. "I have to get going though. I'll talk to you tomorrow."

"Thanks again, Dad."

"Have a good night. Give him a hug goodbye for me."

"I will."

She shut the door behind him and took a deep breath. A moment to finally relax and Liam was actually sleeping, what were the odds?

* * *

After taking a quick peek in on Liam to make sure he was still sleeping, she started a bath for herself. She wouldn't have long to enjoy it because Liam would surely wake up within the hour.

It was still worth it.

Sinking down into the steaming water, she closed her eyes and let the heat relax the tension from her body. This was exactly what she needed.

About an hour had passed, leaving her mind finally at ease when her cell phone started to ring.

Please don't be work.

Looking at the display, she smiled and bit down on her lip.

Rick.

"Hey, you."

"I see you survived the day," he joked.

"Barely. This case is intense and we're at a dead end at the moment."

"Good thing they have New York's best detective working on it."

"I didn't feel like that today. I'm glad you called," she whispered.

"Of course I called. I wish I could come over and see you. What are you and Liam doing?"

She could imagine him lounging in his study.

What she wouldn't give to be curled up against his body…

"Well Liam is sleeping and I'm in the bath," she said, holding back a laugh. She knew she was teasing him but she couldn't help it.

He groaned loudly through the phone and she giggled at the response.

"You're killing me. Seriously," he whined.

"Maybe if you're good and I close the case tomorrow, I'll let you make me dinner tomorrow. I haven't eaten yet and I'm starving."

"I could bring you over something now. Maybe catch the end of your bath?" he suggested, chuckling.

"Too late, Hot Shot. I'm wrapping myself in my robe as we speak," she said.

"Just as well. If I can't be there—"

"Mommy?" Liam called from the other room. She pulled the plug from the tub and walked in search of her son.

To say she wasn't expecting what she found would be a complete understatement.

Liam was standing in the middle of the family room covered in what appeared to be flour.

"I tried to cook you dinner like Rick does," he said, tears streaming down his face.

That would've been enough to put her in a panic, but it only took a quick look into the kitchen to see that things were about to get far, far worse.

Small licks of fire on the stovetop became growing flames in an instant and the smoke alarm started to sound. She stood frozen for a second before her NYPD training kicked in.

"Um Rick, I've gotta go. My kitchen's on fire," she stammered as she dropped the phone and hurried toward the flames.

* * *

_**TBC**_

_Thanks for reading! I would love to hear from you!_


	10. Chapter 10

_A/N: For everyone who has been so sweet and supportive of this story. You are all the best._

_Jo- thanks for the extra help with this one. I appreciate it far more than you realize!_

_Disclaimer: I do not own Castle or any of its dialogue, but all mistakes are mine._

* * *

**_Medical Attention_**

* * *

Castle's S1 AU Based on a tumblr prompt from anon: Castle's a doctor, a friend of Lanie's. AU Caskett meeting at Lanie's birthday. *Castle Winter Hiatus 2014 Ficathon Entry*

* * *

**Chapter 10**

The fire department arrived quicker than she could've imagined, which was probably due to the fact that she could barely remember calling them; all of her police training had flown out of her mind and while calling the FDNY should have taken precedence over her attempts to quell the flames, it had come a shameful second.

Kate was able to calm Liam's tears as they waited on the sidewalk while the firefighters worked on putting out the flames. She'd had the fire mostly contained at one point but it had become too hot and their extinguisher was underneath the sink right next to the source of the heat. So by now she was sure the flames had to have spread further.

At this point, she had no idea how much of her place had been affected.

The paramedics that had shown up along with the truck luckily had some sweats for her to wear instead of standing on the street in a bathrobe in the middle of a New York City winter. They were huge but she was warmer than she could have been, so she wasn't complaining.

Liam clung to her body and buried his head against FDNY sweatshirt. While the tears themselves had dried up, he was still whimpering softly.

"Mommy, I'm sorry," he said, looking up at her through his eyelashes

"Hey, hey. It was an accident," she whispered, leaning down to kiss his forehead. "You just can't use the stove without an adult around to supervise."

"That's what Rick said."

"You could've been hurt. We're very lucky it was as small as it was," she said against his skin, rubbing his back.

"I just wanted to help."

"You help every day by just giving me a smile or a hug. That's more than enough," she said, lifting his chin to look into her eyes.

The rest of the residents in her building were waiting alongside as she swayed and hummed a melodic rhythm to soothe her son. The last thing she wanted was for Liam to be traumatized by the situation, but hopefully he learned his lesson to avoid cooking alone for a while.

A couple of her neighbors checked to make sure they were okay once they learned that the fire was in their unit. She just smiled politely at their concern and went back to comforting her son.

"Kate?"

Frantic footsteps and gasps for air were followed by the call. Rick wrapped his arms around her and Liam before she could even entirely turn around to face him.

"Hey," she murmured as he pulled her closer and kissed her hard against her mouth.

"Are you both alright? I didn't know what to think when you hung up. I had to make sure you guys were okay." His voice was thicker than usual. The worry he had to be feeling was painted on every inch of his features as she ran her free hand against the stubble on his jaw.

"We're fine, Rick. Just a small kitchen fire," she said, stepping back.

"I tried to cook," Liam admitted, turning his head away from her chest and toward Rick.

"Do you want me to take a look at him? Burns? Smoke inhalation?"

"Yeah. I think he's fine from what I could tell, but I'm sure it wouldn't hurt."

She nodded and Rick reached his arms out from her son.

"Hey Buddy. Let's go sit over here," Rick said, holding Liam close.

Kate could tell by the way that Rick was clinging onto her son; the phone call had scared him more than he cared to admit. She followed as he looked over Liam for any signs of trauma and took a deep breath.

"I think the biggest thing he needs is a bath," Kate said, able to look at Liam with fresh eyes now that Rick held him; his clothes and skin were still covered head to toe in flour.

"Well he can have one as soon as we get back to my place," Rick explained while ruffling Liam's hair and setting him down on the sidewalk next to them.

Biting down on her lip, she looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Excuse me? What makes you think we're going to your place?"

"Your apartment was on fire," he stated.

"A small kitchen fire. It didn't spread," she protested, the line sounding weak to her own ears when she admitted to herself that she didn't really know that it hadn't spread, but surely it couldn't have moved much further from when they left.

"How do you—did you talk to the fire department yet?" Rick asked, changing his question midway when he realized Liam was staring up at him with a concerned look.

"Not yet. And even if we can't stay—um, Rick, I can't expect you to have Liam and I stay with you. That's too—"

Her dad's place was too small for the two of them to stay with him, but she could just as easily get a hotel for a couple days. Rick's loft would be a better option, but he had his mother and daughter to think of as well.

Adding a three year old, even temporarily, was a lot to ask.

"Kate, unless for some reason you don't feel comfortable… but if you're thinking that you're imposing, you're not. I want you both there," he said, cupping her cheek so she would look into his eyes.

"Rick, we'll see," she said with a sigh. Things had been going so well, but this was something huge. Staying with him? That could ruin everything that they were building. Too much pressure, too soon.

"Ms. Beckett?"

Kate looked up at the fireman walking toward them as Rick lifted Liam back into his arms. Out of the corner of her eye, she watched him pressed a kiss against the side of Liam's head. A small hesitant smile formed on her face as her mind flashed to an imaged of them in the future. Rick was perfectly ingrained in the daydream and her previous doubts started to disintegrate.

"Ms. Beckett?"

The man waved his hand in front of her face as embarrassment flooded against her cheeks.

Oops.

"Yes! Sorry! Is it safe to go up now?"

"The fire has been contained but can I suggest that your son stays down here with his dad while you gather some things—"

"Oh, that's not his dad. Rick's, my boyfriend…" she rambled and shook her head as the man just stared at her expressionlessly. "I'm sorry. You don't care… gather my things?"

"You'll see what I mean when we get up there," he stated.

"Okay." She turned back to Rick as concern shone in his eyes. "Stay with him?"

Rick nodded in her direction and brushed his hand against Liam's head.

"Always."

* * *

Her breath caught in her throat and her heart sank to her stomach when she walked into her home. The kitchen was destroyed and part of the family room was as well. She was now grateful that she had decided to evacuate when she did, but obviously it was far bigger than she had initially thought.

Walking through the space, she grimaced when she caught sight of the couch damaged beyond repair. So many good memories of family movie nights, literally up in smoke.

Now she knew why it was necessary for Liam to stay outside with Rick. This was making her emotional and she could only imagine how terrified her son would be.

"Ms. Beckett?"

"Yes?"

"I recommend getting a bag together for your family…"

"Mmhmm…"

She could barely think straight as all of the thing she'd need to take care of flashed through her mind.

"Miss?"

"Detective… Detective Beckett. I work down at the 12th," she explained as schooled her emotions and slipped into work mode. Emotional mother wouldn't help at a time like this.

"Okay, Detective Beckett. By the looks of things, I'd say you'll have to find a place to stay for awhile."

"I agree," she said looking around.

No, Liam wouldn't step back into this place until it was fixed. He was already upset enough. She wouldn't let him have the memory of what his accident did to his home permanently scarring him.

"I'll give you some time, but the quicker you can get some things together…"

"Thanks. I'll be quick."

Before she packed a bag for Liam and herself, she walked back to her room to put on some clothes that actually fit her, but soon realized everything in the apartment smelled like smoke.

Digging through her drawers to find a pair of jeans and a shirt, she threw on the smoky items and tossed the oversized FDNY sweats onto her bed.

It was better than nothing…

She grabbed the biggest bag she had and tossed in a couple days' worth of clothes for herself along with toiletries before she walked toward Liam's room. She stopped short when she found Liam's blankie on the ground in the family room, right outside of the path of the damage.

Reaching down to hold the blanket to herself, she broke down in the middle of the room.

* * *

"I had Alexis set up the guest room for Liam," Rick explained, walking through the door carrying Liam's sleeping body as she followed him, carrying their bag. Looking down at the boy passed out in his arms, he smiled to himself. Guess he'd have to wait until tomorrow for a bath.

"It's just for tonight. Until I can figure something else out," Kate said, trudging behind him up the stairs.

When she had met them on the street, he could see the look in her eyes. It had been worse than she had expected. She hadn't even argued when he wrapped his arm around her and led her to his place.

"Anything you need…"

"Let's just get him into bed," she whispered, as she put down the bag and lifted Liam from his arms to lay him down.

He stood back in the doorway and just watched in awe. She had to be the strongest woman he had ever met. It was obvious that the day had taken its toll on her, but she kept moving forward.

Liam had asked him several questions about the fire while Kate was inside getting their belongings. He wanted more than anything to tell him that he would make everything okay, but he didn't get to decide.

Every day he fell more in love with this family, but watching as she kissed Liam's head goodnight, he knew this wasn't the time to tell her.

"I don't know…" Kate started when she met him in the hallway, but her voice broke.

"What don't—"

"What is this going to do to him?" she asked as she leaned her forehead against his chest. Her body deflated into his embrace when he wrapped his arms around her waist.

"You make things normal for him. Just give him nothing but love—"

Her head shot up and he could finally see the tears that threatened to fall.

"Rick, I couldn't—we could've been hurt. I could've lost him!"

"But you are both safe. They'll fix your apartment before you know it, but what matters the most is that both of you are fine," he reminded and pulled her back into a hug.

"I tried to put it out myself," she mumbled against his shirt.

"Then you're lucky that you didn't hurt yourself."

"I am. I was an idiot. I'm a cop—I've had enough emergency training, but when it came to my own home and my own family…" she scoffed and rolled her eyes.

"You're not superhuman."

"As much as I'd like to be. I know—you're right."

"Let's get these clothes in the wash to get the smoke off of them."

She nodded with a small smile and picked up the bag from the floor.

"Thanks Rick. Seriously, for everything. I promise we'll be gone tomorrow and out of your hair."

"Kate, stay. Please," he said, cupping her face and wiping away the stray tear that rolled down her cheek, with the pad of his thumb. He leaned forward and feathered a soft kiss against her lips. "Stay."

"If I agree to stay until my apartment is fixed, will you promise to tell me if it gets to be too much? I really like you, Rick. I lo—I like us," she whispered. "This is too new for this added pressure, what if we crumble?"

He shook his head slightly and kissed her again.

"We'll be amazing. Without a doubt…"

Taking the bag from her, he laced his fingers with hers and led her downstairs.

* * *

"Hey, Kate," Alexis greeted from the kitchen. "I made you some hot chocolate." He could see the hesitation in his daughter's eyes; Alexis wanted to help but she didn't know how so she did the one thing he always did for her when she was upset.

Double marshmallow hot chocolate.

"I'll get these in the wash for you. Go sit down and relax," he said, kissing Kate's cheek as he turned to put a load of clothes into the machine.

When he joined them a couple minutes later, Kate was seated at the breakfast bar with a smile on her face.

"Alexis explained that you're the one responsible for this?" Kate asked, lifting her mug in his direction.

"Anytime I'm having a bad day, he makes me his special hot chocolate. Maybe it can't solve all the problems of the day, but it always seems to help," she explained, smiling into her cup.

"Secret recipe," he said, kissing the top of her head before he sat down in between his girls. "Maybe I'll share it with you one day." He winked at Kate and reached for his mug.

"You're okay with me and Liam staying here for tonight, right?" she asked Alexis.

"Wait—tonight? I figured you guys would be staying here for awhile."

Smart girl.

He grinned his approval at his daughter's statement and turned back toward Kate.

"What about your mother?"

"She's out of town for a couple days at some retreat, but she won't mind, Kate. I told you, we want you here."

"It'll be fun having Liam around," Alexis said, nodding in agreement.

Note to self, he needed to raise her allowance.

"You promise you'll tell me if it becomes too much? Either one of you?"

"Promise."

"Promise," he said, reaching over to squeeze her hand.

"Okay. You win. We'll stay."

* * *

After staying up to talk to Alexis for a little while, Kate could feel the weight of the day upon her as her eyes began to droop.

"Let's get you to bed," Rick whispered into her ear. She nodded and let him lead her into his room.

Looking around his room, she smiled to herself. This would be the first time she'd be sleeping in his bed.

And she felt and looked like death warmed over.

"I smell like smoke," she admitted.

"Not that bad."

She rolled her eyes at his obviously false statement.

"_Rick_."

"Okay, fine. You do, but it's nothing a shower won't fix." He winked at her suggestively and she grinned. "Here," he said, opening one of his dresser drawers. "Just wear this to bed since your clothes haven't finished up yet."

"Thanks."

She took the red t-shirt and boxer shorts from his hand and followed him into the bathroom.

"Towel, washcloth." He handed her the items and moved closer to the shower before turning it on for the hot steam to fill the room. "Let me go grab your toiletries from the hallway so you don't have to smell like me. That would just be … confusing," he teased.

"Okay."

Setting the towel down on the stool next to the shower, she removed the smoky items from her body and stepped into the welcoming water stream. Washing away the pain of the day, she closed her eyes and let the heat run down her body, soothing her.

"Oh, uh. Kate?"

She opened her eyes to find her slack jawed boyfriend standing there with her shampoo and body wash in hand. "Are you just going to stand there? Or are going to come in and help?"

* * *

The water ran cold by the time they were wrapping themselves in the fluffy white cotton of Rick's towels, but it was exactly what she had needed to help her forget about everything that had happened for the time being.

"Mandatory nightly showers," Rick husked in her ear.

"Oh really?"

"Yep, newly appointed house rules for detectives."

She laughed as she finished drying herself off and started put on his clothing.

"I think that can be arranged. Your showerhead is amazing."

"Really? The showerhead?"

"Among other things," she said, shooting him a look from over her shoulder as she walked into his bedroom.

"I could get used to you staying here," he called from behind. She sat down onto the bed and watched as he joined her.

"Rick, this is temporary."

"I know. I was—"

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves," she said, turning to him and kissing his cheek.

"Okay. I'll try, but on a different subject –can I just say how hot you are, wearing my clothes?"

"_Caveman_," she joked, bopping him lightly with one of his throw pillows.

"You should probably get some sleep. I have to be at the office tomorrow. Are you going to the precinct?"

"No, I called and talked to Montgomery when I was up in my apartment. He wants me to take the day to get things handled. Ryan and Esposito will call me if there are any developments with the case."

He pushed back the blankets and crawled into bed, reaching for her hand to pull her down next to him. Sinking down into his mattress, she realized she'd never sleep the same in her bed again. She had never had a bed this comfortable.

"It's official. I'm stealing your bed when I move back into my apartment," she said, sighing as she closed her eyes.

"You'll have to kick me out of it first," he said, chuckling and kissing her cheek. "Goodnight, Kate."

She turned so that her mouth met his before snuggling into his chest. The night may have been full of unforeseen drama so far, but at least, Liam was safely asleep upstairs, and for now, she was content in Rick's arms.

* * *

_**TBC**_

_Thanks so much for reading! I would love to hear from you!_


	11. Chapter 11

_A/N: Love you all! Sorry I didn't individually respond to each of you last chapter, but all your words are so appreciated! :)_

_Jo- thanks for the help and the friendship!_

_Disclaimer: I do not own Castle or any of its dialogue, but all mistakes are mine._

* * *

**_Medical Attention_**

* * *

Castle's S1 AU Based on a tumblr prompt from anon: Castle's a doctor, a friend of Lanie's. AU Caskett meeting at Lanie's birthday. *Castle Winter Hiatus 2014 Ficathon Entry*

* * *

.

**Chapter 11**

"So what do you want to do today?" Rick asked, wrapping his arms around her waist while she sipped her coffee.

"Oh, I don't know. I honestly can't believe we're both off today," she said, squirming as his hand slid underneath her shirt to skate against the skin of her abdomen.

"Well how about we start off by having breakfast before Alexis needs to go to school."

"Sounds perfect."

She turned in his arms to kiss his lips before he moved to the fridge to start cooking.

"Mommy?" Liam called from the stairs.

"Hey, Sweetheart," she greeted, as her son ran over and jumped into her arms. "Good Morning."

"Morning. I'm hungry," he said.

Smiling at his sleepy expression, she brushed her hand through his messy hair and kissed his forehead.

"I'm getting ready to make breakfast for everyone right now, Buddy," Rick said, setting all the ingredients onto the countertop.

"Pancakes?"

"Is there anything else to have for breakfast?"

Kate shook her head and smiled at her son.

"Liam, you can't get used to this, Babe. When we move back home, you know I don't make pancakes every morning," she teased and sat him down on one of the stools at the counter to free her hands for her coffee.

Rick looked up from cracking an egg with an inquisitive expression. For the week and a half that they had stayed here they had tiptoed around the topic of her moving home. For her part, she couldn't deny that it was amazing sleeping in his arms every night but it wasn't reality.

Living together, full time was too much, too soon.

"I like it here," he whispered, as Rick slid a cup of milk over to him.

"I do too, but we knew from the beginning that this was just for a little while. Plus, it looks like it will be a little while longer anyway. The contractor just left me a message that there was a delay in pulling permits to do the electrical work."

"Well that's—" Rick said before he bit his lip and went back to stirring the batter. She raised her eyebrow at his sudden lack of words, but she didn't want to press the issue with Liam sitting there. He wasn't off the hook entirely. "So, Liam what do you want to do today?"

"Dinosaurs?"

"What does your mom think?"

"If the boy wants dinosaurs, I think we should let him see dinosaurs," she said, shaking her head with a laugh as she started to sort through a stack of mail that had been forwarded from her apartment before she became distracted.

"The museum it is!"

"Yay, dinosaurs!" Liam giggled with a clap of his hands as a sleepy Alexis finally joined them in the kitchen.

"Do I smell pancakes?"

"Your nose is correct," Rick said, smiling at his daughter. He flipped a few pancakes onto a couple plates for the kids before doing the same for the adults.

"Man, I could get used to Kate and Liam being here every morning. Dad never cooks breakfast this often," Alexis joked.

Even though she knew she was kidding, Kate's heart sank at her words. They had been here such a short amount of time and yet they were already getting into a rhythm for their daily schedule.

It worked, and it scared her to death.

She just kept telling herself this was too soon, protection for her heart from falling too fast.

If she was being entirely honest with herself though, it was already too late.

This was comfortable. This was safe. And just because it was temporary didn't mean she couldn't enjoy every moment; watching the four of them enjoy their breakfast together, she couldn't help but smile.

"What?" Rick asked and she shrugged.

"Nothing. Just thanks for breakfast," she said, cutting up more of Liam's pancakes. She was about to go back to her own plate when she noticed a handwritten envelope from the corner of her eye from the stack of forgotten mail.

She _never_ got real mail anymore.

Her imagination began to wander when she heard her cell phone buzz next to her, pulling her out of her thoughts.

Work.

Damn.

"Beckett."

"Hey, Beckett."

"Sir, it's my day off," she started.

"I know, and I wouldn't be calling you if it wasn't necessary."

"A homicide was just called in and we have a couple officers out sick today. Is there any way you can assist?"

She looked around and met Rick's eyes in a panic as he mouthed '_it's okay_' to her.

"Fine. I'll be there as soon as I can," she said.

There went the idea of their perfect day.

"You have to work, Mommy?"

"Yeah, Buddy. I'm afraid so. I guess no dinosaurs today."

"I can still take him, if you'd like? Or I can drop him off at daycare for you? Whatever you want me to do to help," Rick said, walking over to her and rubbing his hand down her arm.

She gave him a small smile and a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Thank you," she whispered against his ear before turning to her son. "Do you want to spend the day with Rick or go to school with your friends?"

"Rick and dinosaurs!"

"Okay, you can spend the day with Rick." Kate turned toward her son to give him a hug and kiss. "Please be good today."

He nodded and she moved back to Rick's waiting arms after taking one final sip of coffee.

"Guess I'm pretty exciting," he said with a smirk.

"Don't flatter yourself, Doctor. It's all about the dinosaurs," she teased as she kissed his cheek again, grabbed the mail and walked back to the bedroom to get ready.

Finally looking at the handwriting on the envelope, she got an awful feeling in the pit of her stomach as she took in the return address.

The letter was from Scott.

* * *

Holding onto Liam's hand, Rick led them down the sidewalk after the museum. The further down the block they moved, the more the crowd picked up and the more people began to push their way around them. After someone nearly knocked Liam down, Rick swooped him up into his arms.

"Better?"

"Better," he said, nodding into his chest.

"Do you want to go grab a slice of pizza before we head back to the loft?"

"Yes! I love pizza!"

"I know you do," Rick said with a laugh.

He headed in the direction of his favorite pizza place while continuing to carry Liam. Having him around at the loft has been just as much fun for Rick as it seemed to be for him; he missed Alexis being little.

Nothing could ever replace his little girl growing up, but the fact that he had the opportunity to spend more time with Liam while they were staying with him was nice. When Alexis was a baby, he had imagined that he'd have more kids one day, but after his marriage to Meredith had fizzled, the odds of that happening seemed to vanish. Once his divorce was finalized, he threw himself into his work and being the best father he could be to Alexis.

As for relationships?

Anything longer then two dates was a rarity and he had never pictured any of those women as a potential mother of his child.

But _this_?

With Kate?

He had never fallen so hard so fast.

And Liam?

The fact that he was part of the deal gave him hope; not only was he dating Kate, but he could see how one day the four of them could be a family.

"I just want cheese," Liam whispered to him as they walked into the busy pizzeria.

"Not even pepperoni?"

"Nope, too spicy. Mommy says I'm boring," he said with a giggle.

"Well, if you just want cheese we'll get just cheese." Rick tickled his side and set him down next to him while he ordered the food.

They managed to find a place to sit and eat their lunch while joking and laughing. He was truly lucky that Liam connected with him so quickly. It didn't hurt that he was around kids all day, but Kate's son?

This was different. This would have been a deal breaker.

"You're funny, Rick."

"You're just learning this now? I must not be doing my job," he said, throwing their garbage away and reaching for Liam's hand to leave.

"Excuse me?"

"Yes?" Rick asked, turning to face the older woman standing there with a smile on her face.

"I'm sorry, but I just needed to tell you. Your son is just about the cutest thing I've ever seen. So well behaved!"

"He's um—he's—"

"He's not my dad," Liam piped up.

Oh, well it was the truth, but it still hurt.

"How rude of me to assume. I'm sorry for—"

"It's fine," Rick said with a polite smile, pressing his thumb and index finger to the bridge of his nose.

Why did it sting so much?

* * *

Luckily the case that Kate had been called in on wasn't as time-consuming as it could have been. A woman had been murdered walking home from work, but the area that it had happened had several security cameras. Now they were just waiting for tech to process the video.

"What's in the letter?" Lanie asked, walking over to her desk handing Kate a cup of coffee.

"What?"

"The letter. Kate Beckett, I've known you long enough to know when you're obsessing on something. You were looking at it before I walked into the break room and you're still looking at it. You're obsessing."

"I'm not obsessing," she scoffed.

"Oh really? So the fact that you keep looking down at the same envelope on your desk instead of telling me about life at casa de la Rodgers means nothing?" Lanie asked with a flail of her hand.

"One, I'm not going to gossip with you in the middle of the _bullpen_," she hissed and took a sip from the mug.

"I came by to update you on the body and if you give me some details while we're at it..." Lanie raised her eyebrow at her and gave a small smirk. She was one of her best friends but there were times she could strangle her.

"Two, you're friends with Rick as well. Remember? You set us up? You could always harass him yourself."

"It's more fun getting the info from you. Rick doesn't like to kiss and tell."

She knew Rick was a great guy, but the fact that he hadn't spilled anything to Lanie was even better. Their relationship didn't need the extra pressure from outside sources. It was already under enough.

"And I do? How long have we been friends?"

"Long enough to know you're doing everything in your power to avoid talking about that envelope," she teased, pointing back to the stack of mail.

"I don't know what it is," Kate admitted.

In the grand scheme of things she would rather talk about this than dive into any personal details about Rick.

"So why?"

"The return address. It's from Scott."

"Scott, your ex. The man that knocked you up and then years later knocked you down in an ice rink, Scott," Lanie shouted as her eyes widened.

"Yes, Lanie. _That_ Scott. And could you keep it down? The guys could probably hear you from the break room."

She leaned her head forward and ran her hands through her hair before trying to hide her face from the room. This wasn't the time or the place to have this conversation.

"Okay, so…"

"So, I haven't opened it. I don't—I can't think of any reason for him to contact me. Any_ good_ reason, at least," she said, looking back up at her friend.

"Well he has no rights, Kate. Anything he says in that letter won't change things."

"No. But the unknown…"

Fear wasn't an emotion she was comfortable with in her position as a detective, yet she was accustomed to the feeling as a mom.

"…Is terrifying, but when you face it head on… that's courage and strength Kate. And you're the strongest woman I know."

"Thank you," she murmured, fidgeting with the corner of the paper.

"Don't thank me. Open it."

Nodding briefly, she folded up the envelope and placed it in her pocket.

"I will. When I'm alone."

"Fine. I get it, but if you need anything, call me," Lanie said, placing her hand on top of hers and giving it a small squeeze.

"Promise."

* * *

The envelope felt heavy in her coat. Heavier than it should for just the paper inside, but as she pulled it out and toyed with the seal with the edge of her nail; she knew she was the one putting the weight there. Scott no longer held the power in the situation.

Like ripping a Band-Aid off, she tore it open and reached for the letter inside. They were just words on a piece of paper. He wasn't there.

Just words.

Yet…

'_Kate-_

_I have no right to send you this. No right to contact you, but my life has changed in so many ways since you've known me. I needed to tell you._

_I have no right to ask for your forgiveness or Liam's. My son. _

_Wow. He's real and not just an idea on a legal document._

_Things change, Kate and so do people. I've changed. I have, but when I saw you that day at the ice rink… when I saw my son? I didn't know how to react. I didn't know what to say to make things better._

_From what I can tell you are both doing well and honestly that's all I could ever want. When you knew me all those years ago, I couldn't take care of myself and we were both hiding from life with each other. It was a nowhere relationship and we were far from in love._

_When I gave up all rights, I thought I was doing the best thing for our kid… your kid. I didn't have anything to offer him._

_I know it's too late to be his father, Kate. _

_Maybe things will heal in time so the hurt will no longer be so fresh when I see the two of you. _

_And maybe, one day…_

_I'd be lucky enough to get to know him._

_I don't want to ruin his life Kate. I don't want to ruin yours._

_I just want a chance._

_-Scott'_

That was…

Not what she had expected.

Her breath was lodged in her throat as she grabbed for her phone from the center console.

"Hey."

"Hey, everything okay?"

"Yeah, it will be. On my way now. I just—thank you for being with him today," she said, her voice cracking as she refolded the paper.

"Of course. Are you sure everything is okay? You sound upset."

"I'm fine. I am. I just—I needed to tell you how much you mean, how much all of this means to me."

The words grew stronger by the time she finished her sentence and she shoved the letter away. It wasn't bad, but the words were a little too late to really change the situation. Scott would never be Liam's dad and that was okay.

In the end, maybe it was better this way.

"Kate, you don't have to thank me. Why don't you come home and I'll open some wine. Just let you relax. It's already late."

Rick never faltered with his care for her or for Liam. He just stepped into the position willingly and she loved him more every day for it.

She loved him.

When she took a moment to finally allow herself to acknowledge it, she smiled into the phone as she listened to his voice.

It wasn't even a question anymore. She just needed to tell him.

"Sounds perfect, Doctor."

* * *

Kicking off her heels by the front door, she was greeted by Rick handing her a glass of red. She hummed softly into her glass; life at the loft definitely had its perks.

"Tough case?" he asked, slinking his arms around her waist to pull her close. The family room was clear and quiet which led her to believe that the rest of the household was either out or sleeping.

"Nothing I couldn't handle," she said, leaning up to kiss his lips.

"What about for those who aren't super detectives?"

"We have some strong leads. Nothing concrete yet."

He left his arms against her body as he led her further into the room. The warmth of his body up against hers eased the stress of the day with just his presence next to her.

"Are you hungry? I have dinner warming in the oven for you…"

"Will it keep if we wait a bit?" she asked, scrunching up her nose and turning to face him.

"Yeah, it'll be fine. I suspected you wouldn't want to eat right away anyway."

"Oh really? And what else did you have in mind?" she asked as they walked toward his room into the adjoining bathroom. Her eyes were met with dozens of flickering candles and a pre-drawn bath.

"Relaxation awaits," he whispered against the shell of her ear before kissing it.

A grin stretched onto her mouth as she spun around to face him.

"Wow, Rick. You've really outdone yourself."

"Well we were supposed to spend the day together and that didn't happen, but I assumed you needed this." Rick ran his hands down her arms and kissed her on the forehead.

She nodded. "I do, but I need you more."

"Was that an invitation?"

"It was," she said, running her bottom lip between her teeth.

"Then how could I refuse?"

"It wasn't so much a question as a demand," she said, lacing their fingers together and walking toward the tub before removing their clothing.

"I like it when you're bossy."

"_Rick_!" she giggled.

"That sounded dirtier than I intended, but I don't disagree with that meaning either," he said with a wink as she swatted at his upper arm. He eased himself down into the water and then she followed to curl up against his body.

"I know you mentioned last week that daily joint showers should be a rule, but can we change it to this." She sighed and turned her head to rest against his chest as he traced his hands along the curves of her side.

This was perfect...

The perfect time to finally stop hiding from the words that she wanted to…needed to say.

"Kate? Today while we were out…"

She wanted to hear what he had to say, but she knew if she didn't say it in this moment; she would lose her nerve. Adjusting herself to straddle his lap, she placed her fingertips against his mouth to silence his statement.

This had to be now.

Perfect.

"Rick, I love you."

* * *

_**TBC**_

_Thank you so much for reading this story and this chapter! Hope you are still with me! I would love to hear from you._


	12. Chapter 12

_A/N: I want to thank all of you for your lovely and amazing support. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!_

_Jo- your beta help is honestly the best and this story wouldn't be what it is with you!_

_Disclaimer: I do not own Castle or any of its dialogue, but all mistakes are mine._

* * *

**_Medical Attention_**

* * *

Castle's S1 AU Based on a tumblr prompt from anon: Castle's a doctor, a friend of Lanie's. AU Caskett meeting at Lanie's birthday. *Castle Winter Hiatus 2014 Ficathon Entry*

* * *

**Chapter 12**

For what seemed like forever, Rick just stared up at her in shock. He had felt the same way for a while but he bit his tongue, silencing the words from leaving his mouth for fear of her reaction. The last time he tried to speak them aloud, she had stopped him. So for Kate to speak them first, that fact alone was unexpected.

Blinking away his happy confusion, he cupped his hands against the curve of her cheekbones and pulled her against his lips in a heated kiss.

"Kate…"

"It's okay if you don't want to say it back. I just had to—"

Rick placed his finger tips against her mouth and shook his head.

"Kate, I love you too. Don't be ridiculous."

"Now I'm ridiculous?"

"If you don't think I love you, then yeah, you're being a little bit ridiculous," he said with laugh, smoothing a couple loose strands of hair from her face.

"Are we insane? I mean, this is moving fast, but—"

"It doesn't really feel like it."

"Nope," she said, popping the word against her tongue. "It's scaring me that being with you is this easy."

"I know the feeling." He grinned down at her and pressed another kiss against her mouth.

"Guess you're just lucky to have me," she teased, running her teeth onto her bottom lip to hold back a smile.

"Oh really? I'm lucky to have you?" Rick raised his eyebrow at her and poked at her side in the spot that he knew was the most ticklish.

"_Totally_. Lucky," Kate gasped, wiggling away from his hands while water splashed over the side of the tub.

"You're lucky to have me too."

"Feeling a little insecure, Doctor?"

"No…"

"Rick, I'm entirely lucky to have you," she said, brushing a kiss onto his lips. "You took me and Liam into your home when we had no place to live. And you love me in spite of everything. How could I not feel lucky?"

The look of sincerity in her eyes completely blew him away. He wrapped his arms around her tighter and she nuzzled her face into the crook of his neck.

Sure, the water was getting cold, but he didn't feel it with the warmth of her body intertwined with his.

* * *

"I'm four!" Liam giggled from across the family room and plopped down next to Alexis on the couch.

"No, you're not. Not quite yet," Kate corrected him from the kitchen. "We'll have your party in a couple of weeks."

"So I'm four soon," he argued.

She laughed at his objection as Rick dumped the freshly made popcorn into the bowl next to her.

"He's very touchy about his age," Rick whispered to her under his breath.

"Yeah. He's quite stubborn."

"Wonder where he gets that from," he teased and dodged her hand from poking his side in mock offense.

"I'm not stubborn."

She scoffed at him, earning her a chuckle from him before he pulled her against his side and kissed her temple.

"Stubborn about being stubborn."

"Shut up. You love it," she said, lightly elbowing his side and stealing the popcorn bowl to join the kids in front of the TV.

"You know I do," Rick called from behind her before sitting down next to her and scooping up a handful of the popcorn. "So what are we watching?"

"Liam wanted a cartoon," Alexis explained, as the Walt Disney and Pixar Studios title cards flashed on the screen.

"Nemo again?"

"Nope, not Nemo," Kate concluded, hearing the opening scene music beginning to play.

"Monsters!" Liam yelled and then growled.

Yep, that was her son.

"Next movie night. You and me alone," he said, leaning down next to her ear.

"And something that isn't animated."

"Definitely."

"You know we're sitting right here?" Alexis rolled her eyes in their direction before turning back to the movie.

"Yes, Mommy. No talking during a movie."

Kate looked up at Rick and sealed her lips to hold in the laugh from her son's exclamation. _Monster's Inc_ was serious business.

"No talking at all?" Rick whispered, smirking and reaching for more popcorn.

"Dad!"

"Guess not," Kate said, suppressing another giggle.

The kids were behaving better than the adults at this point and there wasn't any explanation for their giddiness besides the fact that they were both deliriously in love. A week of _I love you's_ hadn't popped their happy bubble so she couldn't bring herself to tell him that her apartment was almost ready.

She kept telling herself she would tell him soon, but she hadn't found the perfect time within the last couple days. Moving back home was a good thing for everyone. They would be able to find their footing in their relationship as it moved into something she couldn't doubt would be long term.

Leaning into Rick's shoulder, she sighed in realization that it seemed that she had found her one and done.

* * *

"So we've been together for more than two months," Rick said, walking from his en suite after his shower, half dressed.

"We have. Yes?" She knew he had to be going somewhere with this statement, but it was too easy to mess with him.

"You didn't let me finish. We've been together for more than two months and yet tonight will be the first time I'm really hanging out with any of your friends."

Momentarily distracted by watching Rick get dressed, she shook her head with a soft giggle.

"That's not true. You've hung out with Lanie."

"You're not getting by on a technicality. Mutual friend prior to our relationship doesn't count," he said, pulling on his socks.

"Why does it matter?"

"I just find it a little odd. You're not embarrassed of me, are you?"

"Embarrassed of you? My attractive, caring, doctor boyfriend?" she asked, raising her eyebrow in curiosity.

"Well when you say it like that… what else do you think?" Rick asked with a smirk, walking over to her and slinking his arms around her waist to press her against his body.

"I think you're fishing for compliments and I'm not biting." She smiled up at him and leaned forward to kiss the patch of skin beneath his ear, but changed her mind and lightly bit his earlobe, earning her a squeal from his mouth.

"I thought you weren't biting!"

"Changed my mind. Now you might want to man up a bit, girly screams won't sit well during the poker game," she teased, moving herself out of his embrace.

"It wasn't a _girly_ scream."

"Mmhmm. Whatever you have to tell yourself. Either way, the guys will eat you alive if you do that around them."

"You're forgetting that I _have_ actually met them before and I can hold my own."

"Seeing them briefly at the precinct and playing poker with them are two _very_ different things," she said with a smirk, lacing her arms around his neck and leaning up to press a kiss onto his cheek.

"Yeah, maybe so, Beckett, but you'll learn that I'm really good at poker. So I'll try and take it easy on them." She looked up at him in curiosity as her mouth gaped slightly. "What?"

"You called me Beckett. You never call me Beckett."

"I was just trying it out, rolls off the tongue nicely."

"Just because they call me that doesn't mean you need to," she said, ruffling his hair off of his forehead.

"No, but it's a fun nickname. Kinda sexy."

Leaning back to look at him, she couldn't prevent the smirk that formed on her mouth.

"You think calling me by my last name is _sexy?_"

"Sure, why not?"

"Because everyone at work calls me that-"

"I'm not asking you to think it's sexy. I'm just saying… Detective _Beckett_… maybe I'm just imagining you in uniform," he said, his eyes trailing down her body.

"Keep dreaming, Doctor Rodgers."

"Now when you call me doctor I have images of you wearing a nurse's costume."

Kate rolled her eyes at him and laughed when she heard his doorbell ring.

"Down boy. Maybe later, right now we have company." She patted his chest and left him standing there in shock as she walked toward the front door.

* * *

"I'm all in." She gave the other players at the table a little laugh as she pushed her chips forward and took a sip of her beer.

"Dude, Rick, how are you going to let your girl here wipe the floor with us?"

"_Let _me?" she hissed at Esposito. Rick just chuckled and added his bet into the pot.

"Oh, now you've done it, Esposito," Montgomery teased.

"How long have you worked with her? Beckett doesn't need me to let her do anything."

She grinned at Rick. So he was going to continue to use her last name for the entire night? The fact that he was so nervous about spending time with her partners and her boss was amusing to her. Ryan and Esposito were practically her little brothers so in some ways, Kate understood his hesitation. She wanted them to like him too. Surprisingly, he seemed the most comfortable around her captain.

"Guess you have a point. Beckett here has always been way too good at poker."

"Yeah, it's why we usually don't let her play," Ryan said with a smirk. "But we didn't want to give up the chance to hang out and ask you about your intentions."

"My intentions?" Rick asked, nearly spitting out his beer. The guys gave each other a small fist bump that she noticed from the corner of her eye while Roy just shook his head and focused on his cards.

"Yes, what are your intentions with Beckett?"

Kate turned to her partners and glared at them.

"Ryan! Rick, don't answer that," she hissed.

"It's okay. I'm not afraid to answer."

"Yeah, Beckett, he's not afraid. Aren't you curious too?" Esposito chimed in with a laugh.

"No, I'm not curious because it's none of your business."

"You're no fun. How can we properly vet him if you won't let us?" Ryan asked.

"You do know that I'm sitting right here, right?"

"Shhh. Not important right now."

"Rick, I think what Detective Esposito is _trying_ to say is that he's glad you invited us all over tonight," Montgomery explained.

"Yeah, it's been fun. Even if I'm on a losing streak and Beckett has home field advantage," Esposito whined.

"That's what you're going with?" Kate asked, raising her eyebrow in her partner's direction. "Don't think you can necessarily call it home field advantage just because I'm staying here."

"Staying here? The two of you have pretty much moved in with one another," he teased.

"_Funny_."

"This place is a lot nicer than your place, Beckett. How do you afford something like this as a pediatrician?" Esposito asked.

"Invested well with great financial advisors."

"Well if I were you, Beckett, I'd never leave," Ryan said in awe.

"Actually my place should be done by the end of the week, the contractor overestimated how long they needed and it's almost ready for me to move back," she said, before she realized what she was actually saying in front of everyone.

Her heart sank as she watched the hurt wash across her boyfriend's face.

"You—you didn't mention that," Rick whispered under his breath. Kate slid her hand underneath the table and squeezed his knee.

"I was going to tell you. I just—"

"Trouble in paradise?" Espo asked in curiosity.

"No, of course not. Call it?" Rick asked, keeping his voice even.

Everyone threw down their hand and she looked down at her cards. Four of a kind. She had the highest hand aside from Rick who ended up with a full house. Looking up at his face, she could tell that he was still hurting behind the mask he painted onto his expression.

Kate took a deep breath and placed her cards down face first.

"Looks like I was finally beat," she said, in mock disappointment.

"That doesn't count if Doctor Boy wins! It's practically the same thing as you winning," Esposito huffed.

"Not quite, but they're still taking your money, Detective," Montgomery said, laughing.

"Yeah Javi, you may need to find someone to repair your ego," Ryan teased as he reached for a handful of pretzels.

The guys started bickering back and forth, but she couldn't focus on what was actually being said because next to her Rick was silent. She had messed up and she knew it.

"Your mom should be back with the kids soon, right?"

"Mmhmm, probably."

"Rick, I'm sor—"

"Not now. Just give me a minute," he said, his voice low and she winced as she could hear the hurt laced in his words.

They both knew this was temporary. That was never a question, but she couldn't deny that the idea of moving back home was disappointing in a way. In another life, maybe she could suggest staying here and leaving her apartment without a second thought. It just wasn't the reality that they lived in.

She needed to think of what was best for her and Liam. Rick fit in perfectly, but it had to be on a permanent basis before they could up root their lives and move in with him officially. They loved each other and they were happy, but they just weren't there yet.

Not yet.

But one day.

Rick had finished stacking his winnings and was about to reshuffle the cards when her cell phone started to buzz. That was a bad sign.

Looking around the table, her partners' phones started to ring as well. Damn.

"Beckett."

She groaned as dispatch spat off the location to the site of the body drop. Even though they were all on call tonight, she had hoped that it would've been a quiet night and now she had to leave Rick here when he was upset. Fantastic.

"Sorry Rick, looks like we're going to have to cut this party short," Ryan said, pulling on his coat.

"Duty calls," Espo added.

"Good thing you were all just on your first beer too." Montgomery rolled his eyes as he watched the boys head to the door. "Thanks for having us over."

Rick extended his hand to her captain and she smiled at the apparent respect he had for her boss. If she didn't know any better, she'd say Roy liked him as well.

"Anytime. Hopefully again sometime soon."

"Yeah, but maybe for the sake of my wallet we don't let Beckett play," Esposito joked and opened the door.

"Hilarious. I'll meet you two comedians at the scene," she called out as her partners and boss left.

"Shouldn't you get going?"

"I don't want to leave with you mad."

"Kate—" Well at least he was back to calling her by her first name again. "—I'm not mad. Surprised? Hurt? It's fine."

"We should talk more later. I just want to make sure we're okay."

"We're okay," he said, brushing a kiss against the corner of her mouth. "Now go, you have a murder to solve."

* * *

When she crept into the loft hours later the case had hit a dead end. Exhaustion saturated every inch of her body, but her eyes focused on the dim light that came from Rick's office. He had waited up for her; he'd deny it if she asked, but she knew better.

"Hey," she said, leaning against the doorway. He looked up at her with a small smile and took the last sip of scotch from his glass.

"Hey. Catch the killer?"

"Not yet. We'll get there, but for now—how were things here?"

"Good. Liam had fun with my mom and Alexis and after some delay tactics, he went to bed with little whining," he said, with a soft laugh.

"That's good. I'm glad."

"On nights like tonight, what would you have done?"

"I'm not following," she said, easing herself into the room.

"If you're on call and get called in at night, before you stayed here, what did you do with Liam?"

"Oh. I would typically drop him off at my dad's place for a sleepover," she explained, sitting herself on the edge of his desk.

"Makes sense, but you have to admit this is easier."

Kate took a deep breath and ran her fingers through her hair.

"It is, without a doubt, but you also have to admit that we knew this wasn't permanent."

"Not yet."

"Not yet," she agreed.

"But do—in the future, I mean—God, I sound like an idiot."

"You're not an idiot."

"There's a future here, right?"

Oh, was all of this about him being insecure? That didn't seem like him at all. He was always the confident one.

"Rick, what's going on? This past week we've been in the _I love you_ honeymoon stage and now you're asking me if there's a future? Of course there's a future."

He stood up and walked over to the oversized leather chair in the corner of the room before she curled into his lap. Kate ran her head against the stubble on his cheek and rested her forehead against his.

"When I took him to lunch someone thought he was my son."

"What?" she asked, leaning back to look him in the eyes.

"Last week. When I took Liam to the museum, we had lunch afterward and a nice woman complimented me about how well behaved my son was."

"I see."

"And to be honest it stung when Liam astutely corrected the woman, but it was the truth," he said, with a sad sigh.

"Rick—"

"It really wasn't a huge deal and I was going to casually mention it but then you blew me away with telling me you loved me. There was no way in hell I wanted to ruin that moment."

"So why bring it up tonight?" she asked, running her hand down his arm.

"You guys are leaving soon. It was just a reminder that this wasn't real."

She shook her head slowly and closed her eyes for a moment before looking back at him with conviction.

"Rick, this is_ very _real and I love you. But do you honestly think that moving in with each other and merging our families on a permanent basis is smart to do this soon into the relationship?"

"No. You're right. I know we talked about moving slow and let's be honest, we haven't."

"Exactly, and I want a future with you, Rick. I don't want something like living with each other too soon messing us up. We were lucky that these last couple weeks have been smooth, but let's face it, we still have a lot to learn about each other," she said smiling. She paused and placed a quick kiss onto his lips.

"We do and I can't wait to learn everything there is to know about you. Peel back the layers of the Beckett onion."

"The Beckett onion?"

"I don't know, it sounded good at the time," he said with a laugh as she leaned against his shoulder wrapping herself in his arms.

"Mmhmm. Well if we're sharing random things that we've avoided bringing into our happy bubble—Scott wrote me a letter."

"He—he did? Why?"

"Surprisingly enough, to apologize for abandoning us," she said with a sad laugh.

"Really?"

"Yeah. I mean he admitted that we didn't have a significant relationship, but he regretted not being in Liam's life."

"So what are you going to do?" he asked, trailing his fingertips up and down her arms.

"Nothing. Apologizing doesn't make up for the years of ignoring his child. He asked if one day he could get to know him, but to be honest…I don't know if that would do Liam any good. This man wanted nothing to do with him…"

"But that's his father," he murmured against her hair.

"Biology doesn't make him his father. Rick, do you care about Liam?"

"Of course, without question."

"You want to know if we have a future? There's your answer. The man I see in my future is a man who would take care of my son like he was his own," she said, turning her head up toward his face.

"Kate, I love you, but not just that… he's wormed his way into my heart too," he said with a laugh. His face was glowing with the smile that spread across his face. She might have fallen in love with him a little more in that moment seeing the love for her child displayed on his features.

"You're such a sap," she teased. "Thank you."

"By the way, I know you let me win earlier."

Her head popped up to meet his eyes and she bit down on her lip to hold in the tell tale sign of her white lie.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Mmhmm and while I appreciate you trying to make me look good in front of your friends, I don't need you to let me win. I can win at poker if I wanted to. I didn't want to show _you_ up in front of your friends," he teased, poking at her side.

"Oh really? You think so? Why don't you put your money where your mouth is."

"I don't want your money, _Beckett_," he said, rolling her last name around on his tongue.

"And what do you want?" she asked, her voice lowering as his eyes darkened.

"If I win—"

"I'll dress up in the nurse's costume," she finished as his jaw dropped.

"Oooh, that's even better than what I was going to say. Yeah, let's go with that."

"And if I win, you can give me a full body massage. Candles. Music. Just relaxing."

"I'd do that without you winning," he said, bringing his hand to her chin and drawing her forward to kiss her.

"Maybe, but I'm a woman of simple pleasures," Kate stated, breathing the words against his skin.

"Or we could skip the theatrics and you could wear the costume and Dr. Rodgers could give Nurse Beckett a massage."

She couldn't stop her eyes from rolling and the laughter from spilling out of her mouth.

"In your dreams, Doctor," she said, brushing a quick kiss on his cheek before moving out of his lap. "We can use Liam's gummy bears as chips instead of pulling your whole set out again."

"You're on and when I win…"

"You're picturing it, aren't you?" she asked, over her shoulder as she strutted out of the room.

"You have no idea." He smirked as he followed her toward the table.

* * *

_**TBC**_

_Thanks so much for reading! I would love to hear what you think!_


	13. Chapter 13

_A/N: I usually avoid huge author's notes but I think this time it's unavoidable. I want to thank everyone for the unbelievable amount of support you have given me and this story. Life happens and sometimes it's busier than you'd like, but the good news is, I'm back now and updates will be regular again. If you haven't checked it out, I wrote a companion piece that goes between Chapter 12 and this chapter. It's called Nurse Beckett which deals with Rick and Kate's poker bet._

_Jo- thanks for being my cheerleader and for the extra beta help with this one. Trying to get back into it has proven more difficult than I thought._

_Disclaimer: I do not own Castle or any of its dialogue, but all mistakes are mine._

* * *

**_Medical Attention_**

* * *

Castle's S1 AU Based on a tumblr prompt from anon: Castle's a doctor, a friend of Lanie's. AU Caskett meeting at Lanie's birthday. *Castle Winter Hiatus 2014 Ficathon Entry*

* * *

_Previously: During a poker game with the guys from precinct, Kate lets it slip that her apartment is ready to move back. Even though it disappoints Rick, they agree it's for the best and the chapter ends with an one on one poker game (results and continuation of poker game in Nurse Beckett)..._

**Chapter 13**

"Alexis!" Liam shouted, running to jump into her arms.

"Hey, Buddy!"

"You would think it's been months," Kate whispered with a laugh as she greeted Rick with a hug and a brush of her lips onto his cheek before turning to shut the door behind her.

"Well they were used to seeing each other every day."

"Rick…" she started, the warning obvious in her tone.

"I'm not saying it's not for the best, Kate. You just know…"

"I missed you." She sighed when she felt Rick weave his arms around her waist, sinking into his warmth.

"Missed you more," he husked in her ear before kissing the patch of skin along her jaw line. Her body calmed from his touch.

"Ew, seriously," Alexis groaned, shielding Liam's eyes from their reunion. "If this is how you're going to act every time… I'm going to personally move you guys back into the loft myself."

"_Alexis_," Rick cautioned as Kate shook her head with a laugh and wiggled out of his arms.

"We're apparently scarring your daughter and my son."

"Not scarred. I miss Alexis," Liam added, tightening his grip around the girl's neck.

"Does he know what scarred means?" Rick whispered into her ear as she shook her head.

"No, but I'm sure therapy will explain that later in life." She smirked and walked further into the room toward the kids.

It had taken her a couple days to get back into the swing of things after they moved back into her apartment, but they were managing. At least, she had thought they were managing, but there were definite drawbacks. Her bed felt bigger and colder than she ever remembered it being, while Liam complained that his racecar bed wasn't as comfortable as the big bed in the guest room at the loft.

Just a couple speed bumps, but things had eventually settled again and they were finding their new normal.

It was just different.

Different, but okay…

She didn't want to tell Rick about the drawbacks because if she mentioned any hesitation with the plan that she once had stood firm on, he would swoop in and insist they move back. Yet she knew that they were doing this for a reason and she had to be patient, as much as her heart conflicted with her head. They were working toward something real and not just some 'flash in the pan jump into it head first' sort of fling.

This was long term.

Possibly forever.

_Forever_. They never said the word out loud. It had been insinuated, but a person couldn't build a future on assumptions and subtext. Words. Words were needed.

"I haven't stepped on a Lego in a week…" His comment broke through her mental ramblings.

"Huh? What?" she asked, reaching for his arm to stop him from joining the kids. They ran off toward Rick's office as Kate turned toward him in confusion.

"The one positive I've found from you moving back. I haven't been tortured with those plastic blocks everywhere."

"Yeah, I'm sorry about that. They have a way of multiplying underfoot." She forced a smirk and poked his side, trying everything to keep the conversation upbeat. However, looking up into his eyes, the sparkle wasn't quite there.

"It was just a way of reminding me that you were still here though," he whispered. Kate reached out to thread her fingers with his and squeezed his hand.

"Rick, just because we're not at the loft all the time, it doesn't mean we're really gone."

"This is the first time all week we've all been together." He sighed and glanced down as their joined hands. "Look at how excited the kids were—"

"Hey, I've seen you," she stated, nudging his chin up with her free hand to meet her eyes.

"But the kids haven't seen each other. I haven't seen Liam…" His voice was quiet and cautious. All of this honesty about her leaving and their new normal playing out in front of her eyes. It was a bit blindsiding. He had been so supportive and agreeable. Was she kidding herself to think that they were entirely on the same page?

"I'm—I'm sorry. I thought the adjustment was going smoothly. Why didn't you say something until now?"

"It was going well for _you_ and I didn't want to interfere," he said, pressing a kiss against her forehead.

"I didn't—" she started, shaking her head to look up at him.

"Kate, we'll work the kinks out. It'll be okay. We're still us and if anything—the fact that I'm missing you now that you're not here, that's a good thing, right?"

"Yeah, better than being relieved that we're out of your hair," she teased. " For the record, I _am_ missing staying here too. It's not just you."

Rick tucked a piece of hair behind her ear and nodded. The line that formed from his lips slightly upturned before he released a soft sigh.

"In time…"

"And next time it won't be a trial run," Kate murmured, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth to hold back her smile.

"No, next time it won't be forced. It will be a natural progression," he said, pulling her back into his arms. "And you're not allowed to leave next time." The words whispered against her temple, his breath hot against her skin.

Maybe she had it all wrong. Maybe last time was more of a natural thing than she had thought, because living apart? It didn't feel right anymore. One thing was for sure; since they left she had been second guessing her decision.

The kids giggling from Rick's office reminded her of their presence in the midst of their conversation. They had apparently already started a movie without the adults. Alexis was pretty great about letting the grown-ups have time to talk to themselves. She was a great pseudo big sister.

"Can I show you something?" Rick asked, his voice growing lighter.

"Shouldn't we join the kids?"

"We will. I just—let me show you first," he said, pulling her arm toward the stairs to lead her to the second floor. "I know you'll say this was too much and I hope it doesn't freak you out. But I wanted to do something. Something that could make our lives a little easier during our transition period."

They stopped at the guest room in which Liam had slept in while they were here and slowly opened the door. Instead of the room being restored to its former generic guest room décor, the space was transformed into a little boy's dream room complete with a race car bed like his room at her apartment.

"Rick?" she asked, stunned and unable to walk through the doorway.

"Alexis helped…" he defended.

"Rick…"

"Hear me out…" He guided her into the brightly decorated area and she couldn't help but grin at his excitement before she shook herself out of the dream.

"We moved out, Rick," she reminded.

"I know and this isn't some sort of ploy for you to move back. I promise… I just figured if he still had a place to stay then maybe every once in awhile you could stay here instead of me always going to your place. Or instead of coordinating sitters or instead of not seeing each other. Or if something comes up with work and your dad can't watch him. I just wanted you to know that you're both always welcome here." She could tell he was nervous by the way the words sped through his lips like he couldn't get each statement out fast enough before the next thought began. Was she really that unreasonable that he feared her reaction to this admittedly over the top gesture?

Kate paused to turn around to take in the entire room before turning back to her boyfriend.

"This is actually kind of sweet. Insane, but sweet none the less."

"Do you think he'll like it?" He pulled her against his side as he placed one of his arms around her waist.

"Like it? I think we'll have a hard time getting him to stay in his boring room at home," she said with a laugh.

"I hope I didn't step on your toes."

"No-no. Just unexpected, but this is a nice birthday gift." Kate smiled up at him and then nuzzled against his arm.

"It's actually not his—"

Her head shot up in surprise.

"You-this wasn't his gift?" she stuttered.

"No, not really because this is just as much of a gift for us as it is for him. It's gifting us with time," he explained and laughed.

That man.

"You're slightly ridiculous. You know that?"

"And that's one of the reasons you love me," he said with a wink.

"Mmmhmm. Your overly generous nature? Yes. One of the many reason, but Rick…this is too much. You didn't need to do this."

"I wanted to. Unless you feel like it's overstepping..."

"Not overstepping. I just can't imagine how I ever got so lucky," Kate said, nudging him out of the room.

"The luck is all mine, Detective."

"Very cheesy, Doctor," she giggled, heading back to the kids with him not far behind.

"You started it."

* * *

Movie night was over in the blink of an eye and as usual, both kids were sleeping by the end. Alexis swore she was going to stay up throughout the entire thing, even sitting herself on the leather chair in the corner instead of the overstuffed sofa. It hadn't mattered. She was out. His little girl had been up studying late the night before so it was to be expected.

"So when can we let Liam use his new room?" he whispered into Kate's ear as the credits of the movie began to roll. She turned to meet his expecting look on his face. Sure he was eager and maybe a little pathetic, but was it so wrong for a man to want his girlfriend to stay with him?

"Not tonight…"

"Not tonight? Wh-why?" he whined. Okay, maybe the fact that he was acting like a man child was the reason she didn't want to stay. He needed to man up. Remind her of all the benefits of staying. Clearing his throat, he glanced at Liam cuddling on the couch next to him. "Don't you think this would be the perfect time?"

"Yes, but no," she sighed.

"Um. I don't want to point out how much you're contradicting yourself with that statement, but I will if it means you stay."

Kate stuck her tongue out at him and lightly laid her hand against Liam's back, lightly tracing circles.

"Not tonight. Rick. It can't be tonight," she stated, her voice low.

"Excuse me for asking the obvious, but why?"

He watched as Kate slid off of the couch to begin cleaning up their glasses and popcorn bowl.

"We've only been gone a little over a week." Her explanation needed to be longer than that, but she moved out of the room. Trying his best to not wake up Liam, he scooted himself off of the couch to follow her.

"Kate?"

She turned back to him for a second, but continued her path with the dirty dishes.

"This is the first time we're all together and then we're already staying? It would almost make it seem like us leaving was pointless…"

"Well…" If she was going to put it that way, it was pointless.

"Well I think it's important for him to realize that we can still visit here and go home. I don't want him to think that every single time we come here that we'll end up staying…"

"So, what Kate? Are you never planning on staying here?"

Sure he was being unreasonable, but nights that he spent without her in his arms, he wanted those nights to be fewer and fewer as the days passed by.

"After seeing everything that you put together upstairs, I was actually planning on asking you about tomorrow…"

Tomorrow.

"What about tomorrow?"

"I have to work late and I was just planning of having my dad watch him until I get off of work, but if he could…"

She was asking him for help. Even for as long as they'd been together, she had rarely asked him for help. He had typically had to offer a couple times before she would take him up on it.

"Yes, of course he can stay!"

"I just figured this way, he could get uninterrupted sleep the night before his birthday. I don't want his birthday morning to be ruined because he's overtired," she explained, walking around to meet him on the other side of the breakfast bar.

"Wait, so you want him to spend his birthday morning with us? Here at the loft?" he asked, trying to school his voice to hold in the surprise.

"Unless that's not something you'd…" Her expression fell and he realized that by dialing back his excitement, he'd made her think it wasn't important.

"Kate, thank you. I'll make him pancakes like he loves. Unless he'd want ice cream? Alexis always liked ice cream for breakfast on her birthday." If she needed to see just how pleased this made him, Rick wanted her to see it all and his train of thoughts were laced with his happiness.

"Let's stick with breakfast foods for this one," she said with a smirk. "I want to include you, Rick. I'm just not any good at this. I'm used to doing all of this on my own and I'm not good with relationships. I don't know what is too fast or too slow or backwards or forwards. I'm a bit lost."

Kate ran her hands down his arms until they met his hands to thread her fingers through his. With a smile, he brought one of her hands to his lips. They were both so hesitant with each other and there didn't seem to be a reason. Time and time again, they had proven to each other that while they each felt like they were bad at relationships, in actuality they were doing pretty well with considering each other's feelings.

"I'm in no way an expert, but all I can figure is just to go with it. Let's not over think it. It did feel like a step back when you left, but I don't want it to be."

"I really don't want it to be either," she agreed, leaning forward to press a kiss light against his lips before pulling back for her mouth to break out in a grin.

"Then we just need to be a bit more creative with things."

"Creative. I can try creative."

When she mentioned creative, he couldn't help but think back to her in the nurse's costume. Not exactly the type of creativity they were referring to, but it definitely couldn't hurt.

"So, we didn't take a step back," he said, shaking his head as she shook hers.

"_Never_."

"Okay."

"You're cute when you're insecure," Kate teased, running her hand through his hair. Yes, he was insecure. This was the most important relationship he had ever had.

"I'm only insecure around you…"

"Well good. That means you're only cute around me," she said, reaching up to press a quick kiss on his cheek and smack his butt.

"Don't start something you can't finish." He laughed, grabbing her wrist and tickling her side.

"Oh I'll finish plenty, tomorrow."

"Tease."

"Not teasing when I'll follow through." The words heating the slight space between their lips. He leaned forward, considering the odds of convincing her to follow through tonight when she leaned back with a sigh. "Tomorrow."

"I hate when you're practical," he grunted, before nodding and kissing her forehead. "I'll call you guys a car."

* * *

Kate walked down the sidewalk, leading Liam by the hand trying to avoid the madness of the after work crowd.

"Two days in a row?" Liam yelled over all the noise from traffic.

"Mommy has to work a special case with Uncle Kevin and Uncle Javi. So you get to have a sleepover with Alexis and Rick," she explained, trying to weave passed a couple of sorority girls walking with their iced lattes.

"Cool! You'll be there?"

She squeezed his hand with quick reassurance.

"I will, _later_. You'll be asleep by the time I'm done with work, but I'll be there in the morning for your special birthday breakfast."

"I'm gonna be a big boy." His face broke out in a huge grin with his bright eyes sparkling.

"Yes, you are. Getting too big, too fast. Can you slow down?" she teased, stopping on the sidewalk to look down at her son. The traffic hustled around them, murmuring comments as they passed.

"Okay, Mommy. I'll try," Liam whispered as he leaned closer into her side and hugged her leg. Smiling at the innocence in his response, she scooped him up into her arms and rejoined the flow of people.

"You'll always be my baby boy."

"Even when I'm a grown up?"

"Even when you're a grown up," she said nuzzling his cheek and hugging him tightly. They were about to turn the corner onto Rick's block when Liam's attention was drawn to the ice cream parlor across the street.

"Can we get ice cream?"

"I wish, Buddy, but I have to go back to work. I have your entire birthday off tomorrow. So we'll get some tomorrow, just you and me," she promised, smoothing down his hair.

"What about Rick? And Alexis?"

"They can come too if you'd like. I just want you to always know that you're my top priority. You're number one in my life."

"I know, Mommy. You're number one to me," he whispered in her ear like it was their secret. "But I like Rick and Lexis. Martha too. She's funny."

Her son's appreciation for Rick and his family was all that she could hope for. They would never have a shot if their families didn't blend so well, but everything fitted. Their relationship worked because their families molded together.

"You're far smarter than I give you credit for."

"I get it from you. "

Kate kissed his forehead and smirked to herself.

He must have; he most definitely didn't get it from his father.

* * *

The computer screen was mocking him. Words scattered onto the word document and he was starting to question his own sanity. He was a doctor. Who was he kidding?

"Rick?" Liam's voice broke his concentration from his writing. _Writing. _The ideas were too strong to ignore on nights that Kate wasn't around. It was just crazy. Clearing his thoughts, he closed his laptop and turned toward the source of the interruption.

"Hey Buddy. I thought you were sleeping. Do you not like your room?"

"I do… just when is Mommy coming here?" he asked, his voice heavy from sleep. A small yawn escaped his mouth as he tiptoed closer to Rick.

"She'll be here soon. Did you have a bad dream?"

"No. Don't want to sleep anymore. Not tired," Liam said, yawning again. Not tired, typical. No child was _ever _tired.

"Mmhmm. I see. You can come over here."

The boy scurried closer and climbed into his lap, looking around his desk.

"What were you doing?"

"Um. I- uh nothing. I'm just playing on the computer."

Telling Kate's son what he was working on before she found out was probably not the best of ideas. Liam grew antsy and jumped down from the chair almost as soon as he climbed up, exploring more of the space as he moved closer to the picture window.

"Cool! Look at the sky from here! What's this?" Liam asked.

"It's a telescope. It helps you look at things really far away. Like stars and planets. Hard to see much in the city, but every once in awhile you can see something on a clear night."

"That's cool. Can I see?"

"We can't see much from my office," he explained, glancing at the clock on his laptop screen. It was late, but tomorrow was his birthday. Kate couldn't be mad if he spoiled Liam a bit. "…But from the garden on the roof, we might be able to see something. That's where I used to take Alexis."

"Can we?"

"It'll be an early birthday present." He smiled at Liam, ruffling his hair as he moved toward the scope. "We just have to be quiet. We don't want to wake up Alexis or my mother."

"Very quiet. Shhhhh," Liam hushed with a high-pitched giggle.

"Let's work on that." Rick chuckled, leading him toward the door to the rooftop after texting Kate to let them know where they would be. The last thing he wanted was for her to come home to find her son missing.

Liam's jaw dropped when he walked through the greenery in the garden. It was the first time Rick had showed the boy what was on the roof and from what he knew of Kate's place, they didn't have rooftop access.

"Can we come up here more?"

"If it's okay with your mom. Sure."

"It's like a secret hiding place."

Rick smiled at the boy's exploration of the garden as he worked on setting up the telescope. The night was slightly overcast, but they might be able to see a couple stars if they were lucky. It was a pretty advanced telescope and better than the average ones they sold in stores.

Late night Amazon purchase for the win.

"Liam, it's all ready. Jump up on this crate and place your eye by the eyepiece."

He ran over and climbed up to where Rick told him to stand, but before he looked through the scope, he turned to him and wrapped his tiny arms around his neck in a hug.

"Thanks, Rick."

* * *

'_Rooftop'_

Not as descriptive of a text as Rick usually would send, but it did the trick. When she staggered through the door a little after midnight, she headed to the rooftop door before she collapsed on the couch from exhaustion. If she sat down first, she might not get up for the night.

The door at the top of the stairs was propped open and she could here Liam's excited voice ring through the air. It was later than she would've liked him to be up, but hearing how happy he was, she couldn't even begin to get mad.

Her heart fluttered as she listened to the exchange between her son and her boyfriend. It wasn't the first time they had male bonding nor was it the first conversation she had even overheard. Yet each time she heard Liam interacting with Rick, it melted her heart a little more.

"Here, I just focused on one. It's a pretty bright star too," Rick told Liam, as he helped him back to the telescope.

"Can I make a wish?"

"Of course."

Kate bit her lip to hold back a comment. She didn't want to interrupt, but this almost felt wrong to watch. Like she was spying on a private moment…

"Do you want to know my wish?"

"Doesn't it make it not come true if you tell me?"

"No. Ben at school told me grownups made it up."

"Well if that's the case, what did you wish for?"

"One day. We can be a big family. All of us."

"That's a really good wish, Liam. A really great one," he whispered. Rick's eyes sparkled as he leaned forward and kissed the top of his head. It was almost too much for her to take. She pulled out her cell phone and snapped a picture of the two of them.

Looking down at the shot, she grinned at how perfect it all was.

Rick was right; it was a really _great_ wish.

* * *

_**Tbc**_

_Thanks so much for reading! I hope I haven't lost you with the hiatus. I'd love to know what you think!_


	14. Chapter 14

_A/N: Thanks for sticking with me! So appreciated xoxo!_

_Jo- you're amazing and have the patience of a saint. I swear ;)_

_Disclaimer: I do not own Castle or any of its dialogue, but all mistakes are mine._

* * *

**_Medical Attention_**

* * *

Castle's S1 AU Based on a tumblr prompt from anon: Castle's a doctor, a friend of Lanie's. AU Caskett meeting at Lanie's birthday. *Castle Winter Hiatus 2014 Ficathon Entry*

* * *

**Chapter 14**

Opening her eyes as the warmth of the day stirred her consciousness, Kate was greeted by the muscular span of Rick's shirtless back. _This_ was definitely the perfect way to wake up. Cuddling against the heat of his skin, her eyelids shut involuntarily in a state of euphoria.

Why couldn't she stay like this all day?

Placing a quick kiss between Rick's shoulder blades, Kate rolled over to glance at the clock and groaned when she realized her alarm was seconds away from blaring. Taking a moment to gather strength, she pulled herself up and trudged toward the bathroom to take a quick shower before she needed to start preparing Liam's birthday breakfast.

Closing her eyes to allow the steam and water to permeate her senses, she jumped when she felt the rush of cold air fill the space and the brush of Rick's hands wrapping around her waist.

"Why didn't you wake me up?" he husked in her ear.

"You looked so peaceful. Figured I'd surprise everyone with having breakfast ready."

Her body buzzed with the knowledge of Rick's body pressed against her own and anticipation fluttered in her stomach.

"I would've rather you surprised me in other ways…"

Kate gasped as she felt his hand coast lower down her side and slide in past her hipbone.

"I see, and in what ways should I have surprised you?" she asked coyly, pressing harder against him while twisting her neck to smirk up at him.

"Oh, I'm sure you could've come up with something," he whispered against her jaw as his hand dipped lower along the plains of her skin. Spinning around in his arms, she tried to gain some sort of control but lost out to Rick pushing their entangled bodies against the tile.

"I'm liking your idea more and more." Her words sounding breathless and needy even in her own ears when she finally pushed up to find his lips. The steam from the shower was starting to make it hard to breathe, but all thoughts were lost when he lifted her body to wrap her legs around him. Breakfast could definitely wait.

* * *

Excitement wasn't accurate.

Elated maybe?

Whatever the word was, her newly four year old had come barreling down the stairs with energy bouncing off the walls.

Four was going to be a fun year.

Rick had asked to help with the planning, but she hadn't expected all of this, nor had she expected that he would take the entire day off from his patients to make sure her son's day was great. After a late breakfast, Rick had asked if she could keep Liam out of the loft for a few hours while the set up began.

A few hours later, they'd been to the playground and explored Liam's favorite candy shop, and she was more than ready to go back to the loft. Kate felt her phone vibrate in her pocket just as they rounded the block toward Rick's place.

'_Alexis will meet you in the lobby…'_

So obviously things weren't ready yet.

What was he up to?

She smirked at the thought and watched Liam run up to the building as the doorman held it open for him.

"Hello, Mr. Liam."

"Hi, Mr. George!" he greeted before he noticed Alexis standing there waiting for them. "Lexis!"

"Hey, Alexis, home early from school?"

They moved over to the side of the lobby so the other tenants weren't blocked by their huddle.

"We had exams today so we could leave once we were finished."

"Well that's fortunate timing."

"It is and this way I can take the birthday boy back to the park, if that's okay with you?"

Liam's head shot up to look up at her and his bouncing body could barely contain his enthusiasm.

"Sounds good to me. Liam, do you want to go with Alexis?"

"Yes! Can we slide?" he asked, now tugging on the girl's arm. Kate bit back a laugh at the scene. Alexis had so much patience with him, much more than she would have had with a spunky little kid at Alexis's age.

"I'll take you to the park with the big slide. 'Kay?"

"Okay! Please!"

"Kate, tell my dad we'll be back in an hour," the girl said, turning back to Kate with a grin.

"Of course. Have fun and be careful." She smiled at the two of them and gave Liam a quick hug before they hurried out the door.

Walking into the waiting elevator car, she could only imagine what in the world Rick was doing that had taken so long.

* * *

Well that explained it.

This was over the top at worst, or extravagant at best.

Kate walked around the great room in the loft and smiled. Everything was absolutely perfect. Exactly how a little boy would dream a birthday party to be, down to the very last detail. She would have liked to take some credit for it, but in all actuality she owed it all to Rick; he had insisted.

"Just, wow."

Her jaw hung open as she took it all in.

"You think he'll like it?"

The fact that he had to ask, that he was worried that any kid wouldn't like this superhero paradise-

"Like it? Rick? Where did this all come from?" she asked in shock.

"I may have gone a little overboard, but he said he wanted Avengers."

"Yes, but life sized action figures?" she teased. No wonder this man was a pediatrician. The childlike excitement that was shining from his smile made her fall in love with him a little more.

"First off… not life sized because the Hulk would be much bigger. And they're not so much action figures as they are wax figures."

"Rick, it's perfect. The fact that…" Her voice trailed off as she walked through the space, taking in all the work that he had put in for her son's party.

"The fact that?"

"The fact that," " she said, her voice thick with emotion. "The fact that you'd do all of this for Liam. It means the world to me that you care about him."

She stopped pacing to run her hand quickly through her short hair and smiled as he approached her to wrap his arm loosely around her waist.

"I would do anything for him or you. You do know that, right?"

"I do, but it's always a lot to wrap my head around. You constantly surprise me…"

"Which is a good thing."

She caught his eye as he shot her a quick wink and a grin.

"Oh, that's a very good thing, Dr. Rodgers," she said before the giggle that she tried to suppress escaped her lips. "A very good thing."

* * *

Liam and his friends' screams and giggles of joy were over and done with in what seemed like a blink of an eye. All the work that had been put into Liam's birthday had been enjoyed by all the little party guests. The kids had had such a blast pretending to be superheroes and Liam even allowed his friends to be Captain America and the Hulk which were his personal favorites.

Best birthday ever!

At least that seemed to be the only words he could giggle throughout most of the afternoon and Kate couldn't help but catch Rick's expression when Liam repeated the phrase. It was the same look that would wash onto his face whenever Alexis said something complimentary.

Love.

Jim, Martha, and Alexis were all sitting around the dining table talking as Kate walked Liam's last friend out from the party. They'd needed all hands on deck to help wrangle all the mini-superheroes and prevent them from entirely destroying Rick's place. She needed to figure out a way to thank everyone, but she knew they'd all decline any sort of gesture. Most of all, she needed to thank Rick, but the ideas of how to show her gratitude to him were very different compared to the others. Smirking to herself, she bit down on her lip as ideas flooded her mind of what would come later that night.

Her daydream was interrupted when Rick leaned up into her against the front door. It had been a long day and exhaustion was without a doubt weighing on everyone.

"Clean up time? I'll get it handled while you relax," she offered, but her movement was quickly halted by Rick lacing his fingers through her hand and pulling her back to him.

"Cleaning can wait."

"You just want to pretend that the Avengers are living in your apartment."

"That would be cool. Maybe the Hulk can move in with Boba Fett in the bathroom."

"You do that and the odds of me ever moving in with you will greatly decrease," she joked and dusted her lips onto his cheek.

"You could grow to love them like you love me. Well, not exactly how you love me because that would be weird."

A loud laugh erupted from her lips and she shook her head when the table of adults looked at them in confusion. "You're ridiculous."

"Just think Kate… you, me, Alexis, Liam, my mother and the Avengers. A little crowded, but I think we could make it work," he teased, his voice low so only she could hear his insane ramble. "It would—"

His imagination was interrupted by the buzzing from his intercom. Rick looked around the room and back at Kate with a raised eyebrow.

Maybe one of Liam's friends had forgotten their gift bag, or maybe Lanie had changed her mind on joining the festivities?

"Dr. Rodgers, it's George from the lobby. There is a gift here for Mr. Liam."

"Another gift!" Liam exclaimed, running to Kate's side.

"Rick…"

What could he have possibly bought for Liam now? He had already done far more than she could've ever afforded to do on her own. Anything more was moving into the excessive stage.

"Hey, don't look at me. I have no clue about this," he defended, before turning back to the intercom. "Thanks George. Please send it up."

Kate walked up behind Rick to whisper into his ear.

"Everyone he knows is here or just left."

"Who else knew you were here?" he asked and she shrugged, trying to calm down the birthday boy jumping up and down at her side.

"I have no clue. Lanie and the boys already gave me their gifts at the precinct yesterday."

"What's the harm in a gift?"

She shot him a glare with that one. The harm in the gift? A mystery gift from a mystery guest? A million scenarios rushed through her head and all were far too terrifying to actually consider.

"The cop in me…"

"Kate, it's a gift. Not a bomb," he teased, when the knock at the door drew their attention.

"You say that as a joke, but I've seen some pretty insane things…" She moved past him to open the door for Liam's delivery. The currier gave her a small smile and handed her the brightly colored box.

"What is it, Mommy? Is it a puppy?" Liam asked, pulling on her arm to reach for the gift but she shook her head.

"Not a puppy, Baby, but let me take a look first."

Jim stood up at walked over to where they stood by the door, forever the protective father and grandfather.

"Katie?" her dad asked, his eyebrow quirked up in confusion. All eyes were on her as she pulled the card from the box and opened it.

'_To Liam,_

_Better late than never. Happy Birthday._

_From Scott'_

She formed a tight smile on her lips and carefully folded the card. The smaller she folded the paper, the less she could focus on the words and her irritation with the situation. Four years and her son had finally received a gift from his father. The nagging thought of how he had even found them formed in the back of her mind, but she pushed it away as she handed Liam the box.

Rick laid his hand on the small of her back, but she shook her head. "It's fine. It's fine," she said, her voice gaining strength as she tried to convince herself.

"Scott?" he whispered into her ear. She just gave him a small nod of confirmation. Her acting skills must need some work. Jim loomed over them for a second but he must have been able to finally understand she wasn't in the mood to talk about it.

Liam tore through the wrapping only to have his shoulders lower.

"It's a baby toy. Who'd get me a baby toy?"

At least it wasn't a bomb.

She moved closer to Liam and gave a gentle squeeze to his arm.

"One of Mommy's old friends," she gritted out. "He doesn't know that much about little boys."

"Oh. At least he thought 'bout me," he said, and Kate smiled at the gentle wisdom her son was showing.

"Very true," she forced out from her clenched jaw. Liam looked down at the gift one last time and then set it down on the table, running off to play with one of his other presents.

Kate watched as her dad gave her another worried look, but she eased her expression enough that he turned back to talk with Martha while Alexis moved to help Liam open up one of his new toys.

"Scott?" Rick repeated.

"Yep. His whole life… not a peep and now he's…"

"At least he tried?"

"At least he tried…"

She sank into Rick's outstretched arms as her mind ran through the day and the family who had gathered to celebrate her son's special day. Liam had so many people in his life to love him.

Would it really be the worst thing if she gave Scott the opportunity to as well?

"He's not you," she whispered at last, into the cotton of Rick's shirt.

"What?"

His chin turned down to face her and she blinked back her frustration with her ex. She had Rick; her heart had told her that much weeks ago. Right now it didn't matter that Liam's father had neglected him because looking around the room and all the trouble Rick had gone to…

She knew in that moment, without a doubt, that Rick would always be there for Liam.

Liam had Rick.

* * *

After the family had said their goodbyes and everyone had gone to bed, they fell into bed with one another where Kate tried her best to show her appreciation for the day. Two frantic rounds later, she cuddled into his chest and feathered a kiss onto his skin.

"We really are great together…"

"Mmhmm. We are. Pretty much perfect," he growled against her collarbone, pulling her closer to his side.

"I don't think I could thank you enough for today."

"No need to, Kate. I would do it again in a heartbeat. He seemed to have a good day."

"He did. The best day… that's why I couldn't say no when he asked to stay here again."

"Smart boy."

"Yeah, he is."

"Plus it gives me more time to have you in my arms."

"Cheesy line," she giggled, turning against his chest. "But I'll allow it."

She felt him kiss the top of her head and take a deep breath. However the comfortable silence was soon filled with the sound of his heart speeding up. Propping her head onto her hand, she found his expression changed from playful to serious.

"Kate, move in with me."

Her body shot up as the sheet pooled around her waist.

"Wha-Rick? We've been over this. We've only just moved back to the apartment…"

"That's not a reason to say no…" He ran his hand along the curve of her spine and her thoughts clouded. It wasn't a reason to say no, but it wasn't a reason to say yes either.

"Rick, are you ready to get married?" Her question seemed to take him by surprise as his eyes widened and he sat up further.

"Married? I said move in."

"Exactly. If I'm going to permanently uproot Liam and move in with a guy, it needs to be for good."

"I'm just a guy?" he asked, smirking.

"Shut up." She poked at his side with a laugh before he pulled her down for a hard press of their lips.

"You said it," he growled against her mouth. Breaking away to look back into his eyes, Kate tried again to explain herself.

"I'm just saying. We haven't talked about long term, _long term_… sex and chemistry doesn't mean we'll work forever."

"It's definitely a good start."

She nodded her agreement as his hands skated along her skin again, leaving goose bumps in their wake.

"True, but who's to say you won't get tired of me in a couple months?"

"Is that really what you think?" he asked, leaving open mouth kisses against her jaw line. If this was his tactic to convince her, it was working.

"No, but we've never talked about the future."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not tonight," she said, nearly moaning. "Tonight I want you to go open a nice bottle of wine and just enjoy each other's company some more."

"Deal – but Kate, just know… the only future I see has you in it."

Her face lit up at his declaration as he slid out of bed to throw on a pair of boxers. She propped herself up on her elbows before she leaned forward to swat at his ass.

"Go," she said with a wink. Kate pulled her bottom lip into the heat of her own mouth to contain her grin from spreading further.

He saw her in his future and that meant everything to her.

Leaning down she grabbed his discarded t-shirt and threw it on so she could meet him in the kitchen to make a quick snack. His scent invaded her senses as the cotton from the shirt hung over her skin; she needed to remind herself to take one of his shirts for her to wear when she had to sleep alone.

Padding across the floor of his office, she was distracted from her destination by a stack of papers on his usually neat desk. Was he being published in a medical journal without mentioning it to her? He didn't like to brag about his career accomplishments, but she knew he was a well sought out doctor in his field.

Moving closer to the papers, her fingers danced along the words etched on the page before she realized that while she had no clue what this was, it was most definitely _not_ a medical article.

* * *

"Rick?"

He heard her voice call to him from his office. The idea of her walking around naked in his office wasn't the worst of images… but damn, he had taken too long finding the corkscrew and she probably had clothes on again.

"Sorry it took so long, my mom didn't put—"

The words jumbled in his mouth as she found her sitting in his shirt with her legs propped up on his desk, flipping through papers.

"Who's Nikki Heat?"

Damn. He really shouldn't have left that sitting out.

"Oh. Um. What?" All elegance drained from his voice and he was left a bumbling fool with two glasses of wine in his hands.

"Nikki. Heat?"

"_Oh_! Nikki Heat? Just something I've been writing…" He tried to play off innocence but he definitely wouldn't be winning any acting awards anytime soon.

"You've been writing? When?" Her voice was a mix of curiosity and surprise. He had told her in the past that he would write for fun and dreamed of being a published author, but that it was just a boyhood dream. Nothing that should be taken seriously.

"Here and there. A lot more once you left…"

"Nikki Heat?" Kate asked, her eyebrow lifting.

"Is the heroine—" he explained slowly.

"I see."

"Based on you…"

"Based on me?" she repeated in question before shaking her head. "Wait? You wrote a story about a stripper based on me?"

"She's not a stripper," he scoffed. "She's a cop. Insanely good at her job. Haunting good looks…"

"Mmhmm." She crossed and uncrossed her legs, hypnotizing him with her actions.

"What can I say? You inspire me." His words sounded far more confident than he felt in that moment watching her glance back at the pages wearing only his shirt. He cleared his thoughts when she stood up to move next to him.

"I knew you said you wanted to be a writer when you were younger, but I didn't realize…"

"Neither did I to be honest. I never really had much to say, and it's stupid because I'm a doctor. And I love my job and I don't want to give up on my patients — it's just that since I've known you… I've had all these ideas in my head and I needed to get them written down. I know it's probably horrible, but I'm doing it for me…"

"Nikki Heat," she mused, her eyes blinking through her jet black lashes.

"Yes, Nikki Heat, and you can mock me if you want…"

"Not mocking. I just," she started to say something, but he could tell she changed her mind on what she wanted to say. "Will you let me read it?"

"You'd want to?" he asked, shocked.

"It seems important to you and if it's important to you then it's important to me. I'm sure it's great, although the name could use a little work." She smirked about the name, but he could tell how sincere she was about her support in the matter. He tucked a stray curl behind her ear and kissed her forehead.

"I like it," he said with a wink.

"For a stripper, but I'll let it slide, I have faith in you." She squeezed his bicep before turning back to the words.

"You think so? It's silly. I'm a doctor, not a writer."

"Rick, anyone can be a writer if they have the passion for it. Hell, I'm sure there are accountants or cops or librarians that secretly write on the side. Your career choice doesn't dictate your creativity. And this? It's good."

"You really are an awesome girlfriend." Kate's lips spread into a grin as a light shade of pink painted her skin.

"I try."

"I was serious earlier. Kate, with you, forever isn't a scary concept."

He watched as she set part of his manuscript down and swooped around to reach for one of the wine glasses he had abandoned on the desk.

"I agree."

"Kate? Are you saying—" His mouth gaped open at her admission.

"I'm saying if you were to ever ask me something… you shouldn't be afraid of what my answer would be."

Before he could say anything further, she took a small sip from her glass and walked toward his bed. She turned just enough to look over her shoulder and smirk.

"You coming, Rick?"

* * *

**TBC**

_Thanks so much for reading! I would love to hear from you! _


	15. Chapter 15

_Disclaimer: I do not own Castle or any of its dialogue, but all mistakes are mine._

* * *

**_Medical Attention_**

* * *

Castle's S1 AU Based on a tumblr prompt from anon: Castle's a doctor, a friend of Lanie's. AU Caskett meeting at Lanie's birthday. *Castle Winter Hiatus 2014 Ficathon Entry*

* * *

**Chapter 15**

A week after Liam's birthday party, Beckett was toying with the card from Scott, aimlessly folding and unfolding it.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Lanie asked, walking up behind her with a laugh.

Kate had asked her to meet for lunch to talk. Of course, she had already talked through things with Rick, but she needed her best friend. She needed girl talk. It wasn't like she could talk _about_ her boyfriend _to_ her boyfriend. Plus, all the confusion over Scott didn't mask the almost proposal, that was weighing on her mind too.

The worst part? Nothing had been mentioned regarding their future since that night.

She was starting to question her own sanity on whether or not the conversation had even happened.

"Ready to go?" she asked, looking up at her friend and painting on a smile. Hoping to avoid any more questions, she shoved the card into her back pocket and grabbed her jacket.

"Yeah, who's watching Liam?"

"My dad has him tonight. Rick has 'after hours' duty at the office and then he said he had a lot of paper work to catch up on." Now that cold and flu season was finally on the down swing, he was trying to get back to the administrative items that he had neglected when the practice was at its busiest. She didn't want to interfere with that.

Lanie aimlessly chattered on their walk, but Kate's mind was everywhere else. Her thoughts continued to swirl around in her head until they were nearly bursting from her lips by the time they were seated at a corner table at the small wine bar down the street.

"Kate, do you have something you'd like to share with the class?"

"Lane, I think I want to marry him," she blurted out, as she felt the heat rise from her chest and wash across her face.

"Seriously? You _think_? Honey, I could've told you that months ago. Hell, I always knew how perfect you'd be for one another. Why do you think I pushed so hard for you to meet?"

The waiter interrupted to take their order and bring their glasses as they waited for their appetizers. Her friend continued to smirk across the table, leaving Kate wishing she had something to throw at her.

"Okay, can you tamper down the gloating for just a couple minutes? This is big. I mean the idea always terrified me, and in some ways it still does. Tying myself to someone and having Liam become so attached…"

"But Rick—" The knowing look on her friend's face was irritating, but it didn't mean she cared any less about the topic. Whether Rick had already talked to her or whether she was just basing it all on assumptions, Kate knew that Lanie cared about her friends' well being.

"But with Rick it isn't like that. I've broken every one of my dating rules with him and as much as my head told me to take it slow, my heart fought that instinct at every turn." She gnawed on her bottom lip as she thought about what else to say. What else she could say to describe how happy Rick was making her?

"Because you love him."

"Yes, because I love him," she said with a nod before she shook her head to explain further. "…But it's more than that. It was like finding something that I didn't know I had been missing. I sound like a cheesy romance novel, but it's true. Forcing myself to move out of the loft-" She stopped to look down at her hands when she heard Lanie pipe up.

"Was a mistake."

She was right even though she couldn't admit it to Rick; it was true.

"It feels like one because after being with him every day, our lives just fit so perfectly. There was no going back from that point as much as my head told me it was too much, too soon."

"Can I ask you something?"

Lanie hardly ever asked before she did anything, so that question alone took her for a bit of surprise.

"Sure."

"After you had Liam, could you imagine life without him?"

"Of course not." Liam gave her life purpose. More purpose than avenging her mother's death. More purpose than her job. It allowed her a reason and desire to live her life, instead of solely giving a voice to the dead.

Falling in love with her son was life changing.

"I loved him with my entire being. The idea of life before him, it didn't make sense anymore."

"Exactly. So why did you think that you could go back to the way things were before you fell madly in love with Rick?"

"To be honest? Sure, I was scared, but—it all felt too good to be true. Fairy tales don't exist, Lanie. But somehow, I meet this gorgeous and overly generous doctor, who loves me and my son? How could any of that be real?" She sighed, running her finger along the stem of her glass before taking a long sip of her red.

"Because after everything you've gone through in your life, Kate, you deserve it. Good things do happen from time to time. You are a wonderful person and an even better friend. It's about time karma got around to giving you something you deserve."

That was the problem all along; her life had taught her to be cynical and skeptical of good things. Rick was definitely a good thing and while it took her awhile to accept it, she was completely ready to dive into it now.

"I just hope he was serious the other night."

"You think he would casually mention having a future with you?" Lanie asked, giving her a look that made her feel like maybe she was insane. Her objection was on the tip of her tongue when their waiter came back with their food. Kate barely had a bite of food in her mouth when Lanie continued making her question why she would ever doubt Rick. "That man is crazy about you. I've been friends with him for awhile and I've seen the women he used to try and date. He loves you, Kate. It's been obvious for awhile. When I talk to him, the way he talks about you and your relationship, he's protective."

"Good, I don't need him kissing and telling," she teased, popping another piece of cheese into her mouth.

"What do you think you're doing right now?"

Kate glared at her.

"Seriously? When have I _ever_ gossiped with you about him? This doesn't count. I'm not going into detail about our love life."

Lanie shook her head and laughed, holding her hands up in surrender.

"I'm kidding! I'm kidding. But truthfully, just be patient, if Rick mentioned wanting a future with you… he wouldn't just say it for no reason."

"I know, I _do_, but it never hurts to have some reassurance."

"Or a swift kick in the booty," Lanie joked. Kate almost choked on her sip of wine as she started laughing with her friend.

"Mature."

"I have my moments," she said with a smirk, reaching for a cracker and abruptly changing the subject. "Have you heard any more from Scott?"

There it was. The elephant in the room that she didn't want to acknowledge no matter how much she need to. She was torn and didn't want to talk to Rick about it more than she had to; sure, her boyfriend understood to a fault, but she didn't want to rub it into his face. No guy wanted to constantly discuss his girlfriend's ex.

Another reason she needed to talk to Lanie. Indecision wracked her mind.

"He wrote me a letter. Another apology and more excuses. Why he sent the gift—he also gave me updated contact information, as he put it, in case I ever need it." Her voice was growing thicker than she intended. It didn't matter how much she moved on from the situation, the sting of his abandonment was always fresh in her mind whenever his named was mentioned. "I still have no clue how he knew where to send Liam's gift which honestly weirds me out a bit," she mumbled.

"Does Liam have any idea?"

Kate laughed into her glass.

"_No_. I'm not going to just randomly bring up the fact that his biological father who never wanted anything to do with him is now trying to be in his life. He's four. He's not old enough to understand."

"Especially when he has a pretty good father figure at the moment," Lanie added with a wink.

"Rick's actually the most encouraging with the situation and he really doesn't need to be."

"But he's a good guy…"

"He's the best and Scott isn't, so why would I want Liam subjected to that?"

Lanie reached forward to squeeze her hand and smiled.

"Is he still a bad guy or do you just want him to be?"

"What are you saying?" she asked, eyeing her friend.

"Things between you and Rick, you are pretty much building the perfect family. Are you just trying to keep Scott at arm's length now because he'll make things messy?"

"He always made things messy," she scoffed. "Lanie, he didn't want me or my son. Why should I ever give him a chance?"

Her indecision continued. Maybe talking to Lanie about this wasn't a great idea.

"You don't have to, but I know you Kate, you're a good person. You'll make the right choice for Liam. You always do."

Swallowing down her hostility toward Scott before she started taking it out on her best friend, she closed her eyes for a moment to compose herself.

"Okay, Yoda. That's enough about me." The wine had thoroughly warmed her veins at this point and the idea of discussing Scott any further would quickly turn this girl's night into either a pity party or a shouting match. Scott was a shadow in her past and Rick was the light in her future. She just didn't want to do something that she'd regret. "Now tell me about this guy you're seeing."

* * *

Friday rolled around with a blink of an eye. Busy people with busy lives and she had barely spoken to Rick in days. None of this was okay. Having a moment at her apartment during her lunch break while she was waiting on the repairman to finish up the final touch on her remodel, she messaged Rick. The stress of the week was wearing on her. She needed to see him.

That, and she needed caffeine.

"You are a life saver," Kate squealed, opening the door to reach for the latte to take a sip. Rick stood in the hallway, frozen at the quick exchange. "Are you coming in?"

"Well I don't know—you seemed to need a moment alone with that cup. Do you need some privacy for you and your caffeine? I can come back…" he teased, as she grabbed his arm to pull him into her place.

"_Funny_. It's just been a hell of a morning," she muttered, taking another long drink of the hot liquid. It was heaven.

"I assumed that with your text of…'Coffee. Need all of the coffee.' So hopefully the latte helps." The pad of his thumb brushed along the skin on the top of her hand that he hadn't let go of, his touch enough to send goose bumps along her arm.

"Your lattes always help. I swear you do something to them." Her lack of high heels today made the height difference even more significant than usual so she had to reach on her tip toes to brush a kiss of appreciation against his lips.

"It's because it's served with love." She giggled at his line and kissed him again.

"Wow. I wonder every day how you remained single for so long, but with lines like that…"

He looked down at her with mock offense before a teasing glint formed in his eyes.

"You're right. Women should've flocked!"

"Totally, but I'm glad they didn't," she joked, poking his chest.

"Even if they did, fate was obviously waiting for you."

"Fate? Laying it on thick today, Dr. Rodgers. What has gotten into you?" She laughed, tipping back her cup for another quick sip of her coffee.

"We've been so busy the last couple of days, I've barely seen you," he mumbled against her temple.

"I know. I'm sorry," she paused, before looking up at him and running her hand down his cheek. "Dinner tonight? I'll cook."

He shook his head for a moment and squeezed her shoulders.

"Actually, my mother wanted to make dinner for all of us tonight. And I know Alexis will want to see Liam…"

"Okay, that works. But do we have a backup in case Martha's meal…" she started with a laugh.

"Tastes like it usually does?" Rick added, winking.

"Um, yeah."

"I'll have the Chinese delivery boy on standby," he said pulling her into his arms and kissing the top of her head. She looked up at him and broke their embrace with a quick poke of her tongue through her teeth, walking toward the counter to grab her keys.

"You're a genius," she shot back, looking over her shoulder.

"No, no. Just your average ruggedly handsome doctor," he said, laughing again as she playfully shoved his shoulder on the way toward the door and grabbed his hand.

"Walk me back to the precinct?"

"Of course, though I think you should eat a little more than just drink coffee on your lunch break."

"I'm making sure I have an appetite for dinner tonight."

"You're really setting yourself up for starvation with my mother in the kitchen," he smirked, stepping into the elevator and squeezing her hand.

Kate laughed. "You know how much I love Chinese food."

* * *

She really needed to apologize to Martha. Everything she had feared about this meal had been completely unfounded. Pleasantly surprised was the understatement of the century.

"Martha, this was delicious! Thank you."

"Really?" Martha asked, pride coloring her cheeks.

"Really, Mother. You've outdone yourself. Where did you learn to cook like that?" Rick asked, taking a final drink of his wine. His face lit up when he looked around the dinner table. It had been a wonderful family dinner and that was exactly what it had felt like.

Family.

Rick's family had become her family without her realizing it had happened, but now that she looked around the table, it wasn't even a question.

"This French chef I dated once taught me a couple of tricks in the kitchen as well as in the be—"

"Mother, your audience," Rick interrupted, nodding his head in Liam's direction at the table.

"Yeah, Gram. Don't push your luck," Alexis joked, hiding her face into her napkin in embarrassment.

"I still thought it was yummy," Liam added, oblivious to what the others were objecting to.

"Well thanks, kiddo. I'll cook for you anytime." Martha smiled at the boy and ruffled the hair on the top of his head. Kate could tell Rick was holding in a remark, but she knew that wouldn't last long.

"Not sure if that would be the best idea for his health."

"Rick!" she hissed, holding back a small laugh as her eyes widened with his comment. Martha just shook her head with a smile as she began cleaning up the table from the meal. "Here Martha, let me help."

"You know Richard, you better hold onto this one."

"That's the plan, Mother," he declared with a glint in his eye. Well maybe they hadn't had a serious talk since that night, but at least she knew they were still on the same page.

However, after all this time of trying to pump the brakes on their relationship, she was finally ready to move on to the next chapter.

* * *

Hours later after Rick had convinced her to stay; they were crawling into bed for the evening with things weighing on her mind. There was no reason to hold off any longer.

"I think I'm going to give him a chance," she whispered, propping herself against the headboard of his bed.

"Give who a chance?"

She knew she was being cryptic. He had always been so attuned with her, but in all actuality there was no way he could've read her mind.

"Scott. He doesn't want to be his father and he signed away all the rights he ever had to that claim. It's just—from everything he's said, he just wants to get to know him." Her words were so unsure and hesitant, yet the entire time, he sat quietly and entirely attentive.

"Okay…"

He ran his hand down her arm, threading his fingers through hers.

"And I don't want Liam to grow up and find out that I kept him from getting to know his biological father. I want to give Liam everything I can, not hold him back from things," she rambled, turning her head to lean it against his chest. "Am I being an idiot?"

"Hardly. I think you're being far more mature and rational than I would be. Meredith and I haven't really seen eye to eye on Alexis, but she never entirely walked away from her daughter. If I was in your shoes—you're considering this far more than I could."

She sighed and held him tighter.

"But what if I'm wrong? What if this is a horrible idea?" she asked, concern saturating each word. He scooted her up so she was facing him. The sincerity in his expression warmed her being.

"Kate, you can't predict the future. All you can do is make decisions to the best of your ability. At the end of the day, you're allowing more people to get to know and love your child. Liam has grown up so loved from what I've witnessed. I can't think of a reason how more love would ever be a bad thing."

More love. That was a way of looking at things that she had never considered. Since opening their lives to Rick and his family, Liam's life had improved in ways she could have never imagined. She knew it wouldn't be the same with Scott but as they'd observed, he really was trying.

"He'll ask questions. You know how bright Liam is…"

"Probably. You don't have to give him all the answers right away and you should make sure that Scott treads carefully with what he says to him as well."

"It'll never just be Liam and him. I can stop it at any time." Closing her eyes for a second, she drew strength for the darkness. "If I do this, will you be there with me? I don't know that I want to do this alone."

Her eyes fluttered open as she felt his lips tickle her forehead, his breath hot against her skin.

"Kate, I'll be by your side the entire time."

"This doesn't change things. I don't want this to change things…" she whispered, climbing into his lap and curling into his shoulder.

"It won't. Whatever you do or whatever you decide, I'm behind you one hundred percent. It will take a lot more than Liam meeting his dad to scare me off from the two of you."

She shook her head at his words and he quirked his eyebrow in confusion.

"He's not his dad."

Cuddling closer to his body, she stretched up to dust a good night kiss onto his lips. Scott would never be Liam's dad, that much was certain. With the dedication and love Rick continued to shower onto them…

…maybe one day he would be.

* * *

_**TBC**_

_Thanks you so much for reading and your support! Loved it? Hated it? Let me know xoxo_

_Jo- thanks for being a great beta and a great friend!_


	16. Chapter 16

_Disclaimer: I do not own Castle or any of its dialogue, but all mistakes are mine._

* * *

**_Medical Attention_**

* * *

Castle's S1 AU Based on a tumblr prompt from anon: Castle's a doctor, a friend of Lanie's. AU Caskett meeting at Lanie's birthday. *Castle Winter Hiatus 2014 Ficathon Entry*

* * *

**Chapter 16**

Kate couldn't believe she was actually doing this. After all this time, Liam was going to be face to face with his father, and not just meet, but actually have dinner with him. _Liam was going to have dinner with his father_. The words were on repeat in her head, because frankly it all seemed surreal in the moment.

Her stomach had been in knots all day and the only thing that had helped was the knowledge that Rick would be there by their side. At this point, she didn't think she could do it alone without saying something to Scott that she wouldn't want to say in Liam's presence. Rick calmed her, and that calming nature would definitely be needed this evening. The more she obsessed about what was to come, the worse it got. Her stomach knots were forming their very own knots.

Scott had agreed to let Kate pick the location for the meeting which was only fair since she was the one actually allowing him to meet Liam in the first place. After debating the best spot, she decided on Joe's Pizzeria. It was Liam's favorite place to eat, but it was also loud enough that any awkward silences could be filled with background noise.

She sighed to herself and ran her hand through her hair, playing with the growing strands. Maybe she should grow her hair out. When she realized where her mind was wandering to she laughed. Liam was meeting his father… and she was worrying about her hair.

Glancing down at the clock while they sat in the gridlock traffic, she pounded her fist against the steering wheel. They were going to be late. Late, and then Scott would think she was backing out and had changed her mind. She pulled her cell phone from the center compartment, staring down at it for a second before bringing up her contacts list.

"Hey."

"Hey, almost here?" Rick's voice soothed the continuous turmoil in her mind. It was almost hypnotic.

If she believed in that sort of thing…

"No. That's the problem. We're stuck in traffic in midtown and not moving at all. Of course, we should've left earlier but one of the other moms from daycare was chatting my ear off," she muttered.

It wasn't like she disliked the woman, but she'd kept trying to kindly explain she had to leave while the woman continued to discuss a fundraiser she'd like Kate to help with. She was actually proud of how much she'd bitten her tongue with the situation. Rick's laugh tore her from her daydream.

"I love how snarky you are when you're nervous."

"Funny. Snarky or not, you love me."

"More and more every day." She could tell he was smiling. His smile was contagious even through the phone.

"Attitude and all, that's why I love you and since you _love_ me…could you save us a table at the restaurant because we're going to be late?" she asked, stringing the words along before he could object. Not that she thought he would, but this was asking a lot.

"How late? A little awkward for Scott and I to hang out together… _alone_." His hesitation was apparent in his tone, yet even then he hadn't said no.

"I know, I know. I'm sorry! I'll make it up to you in _so_ many ways."

"You will owe me, big time!" he teased.

"Thanks, Babe."

"_Babe_?"

"Shut up. Just go with it."

"First you call me babe and now you tell me to shut up…"

"_Rick_!" she scolded with a giggle.

"Sorry, sorry. Yes, I'll get us the table. Everything will be fine. I promise it will all go smoothly."

"Don't promise something you can't guarantee." The nagging feeling in her stomach was more than just from the idea of having Liam meet Scott; she couldn't ignore the inkling that something was going to go wrong.

But was it? Or was she just assuming the worst?

"I promise, one way or another, we will have a great night." Just like that, she believed him. Whether Scott was a disaster or not, they'd be with Rick and things would be fine.

"Okay. See you soon."

"See you soon."

Throwing her phone into her bag, she looked back at Liam from the rear view mirror as he hummed to himself and flipped through one of his picture books. He was completely unaware and she felt bad about it. Even though he was only four, it would be blindsiding to introduce him to Scott with a title.

Hey Liam, this is your father.

Sure, it was honest, but she wasn't ready for Liam to know that Scott was his father yet. Scott needed to be able to prove that he was going to stick around. He needed to be a reliable person before that label would even be uttered.

Right now he would just be known as Kate's old friend and even that label left bile rising in her throat, but she swallowed it down for Liam's sake.

This was all for her son.

* * *

If he didn't love Kate so much, this would be the last thing he would do. In fact, if he didn't love Liam so much, this would be the last thing he would do.

Rick was pretty mellow guy, able to have a conversation with almost anyone. Anyone except for Scott. That man was the last person he wanted to utter a syllable to, let alone hold an entire conversation with, while waiting for two of the people he loved to arrive for dinner. The same two people who the man, whom he had been asked to entertain, had abandoned. By leaving them, Scott's loss was Rick's gain. That much he had to be grateful for.

Sighing for a moment, he stood on the sidewalk staring inside. He had been as supportive of this situation as he could be. Kate needed him and he couldn't let his personal feelings cloud her decision, but at the end of the day Scott would never be his favorite person. Yet, favorite person or not, he would be there to be the rock for two of _his_ favorite people.

Fake smile and all.

Painting the expression on his face, Rick took another deep breath and opened the door to the pizzeria. Walking up to the hostess, he requested a table for four and thanked the woman as she handed him the pager.

Ten minute wait.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Scott had already arrived. Rick watched as he paced back and forth before darting towards the exit. He had only seen the man one other time at the ice skating rink, but his face was ingrained in his memory. Now he was leaving? No, he couldn't just let him leave without a word.

"Where do you think you're going?" His question was laced with all the hostility he held for this man.

"Oh? Rick was it? Kate mentioned you would be joining us."

Even his tone was irritating enough to get underneath Rick's skin. The way he said her name, like he held some claim over her still after all these years. He wasn't a jealous man and he knew he didn't have anything to be jealous of regarding Scott; it was just his smug, sleazy demeanor. This man didn't deserve to have Kate and Liam in his life.

"Yes. But you're avoiding the question. Where were you going?"

Scott's eyes shifted back to the door and he looked down at his hands. His entire façade changed to embarrassment.

"I can't…"

"What do you mean you _can't_?" Anger was clouding Rick's vision, but he tried to contain it. Going off on the man at this point wasn't even worth his breath.

"I thought I could, but this is really happening. This is…"

This was really happening? Because all of the weeks of planning that were involved in setting up this meeting weren't an indication that this was real? All polite conversation ended in that moment.

This man had messed with the people he loved for the last time.

"You're a coward. It may not be my place, but you have jerked them around long enough. Liam is a smart, loving, and beautiful child and you are a fool to not want to be in his life," he spat, causing Scott to stutter back like the words were an actual physical blow.

"I should've stayed away. I didn't think it would feel this overwhelming now. I was in shock when I saw them that day at the ice rink. And the shock made me so desperate to part of it. To show Kate that I could be there for them in a way I wasn't able to before. Seeing my son? How happy and cute…" His explanation was shallow at best. He had seen that he was cute and happy?

"No thanks to you…" he snapped.

"You're right, but maybe he's happy because I was never a part of his life. I never could destroy his happiness and I realize that now. By trying to start a relationship with him? I'm tempting fate."

"Tempting fate… you're full of excuses. What happened to the changed man that you pleaded to Kate?"

Scott started backing to the door, which at this point Rick had to concede was probably for the best. A couple people in the waiting area were listening in on the confrontation and he didn't want there to be a huge scene when Kate arrived. The man who stood before him was not the same man who had written Kate the letters. Those letters were convincing, but the man who stood before him was a shell, ready and willing to break promises to Kate and repeating history years after he first let her down.

"I haven't—I just wanted to. I thought if I, fake it 'til you make it, you know?"

"Scott, they will be here soon. Your son will be here soon," Rick reminded him, steadying his voice.

"And that's why I have to go. Please give this to Kate?"

"Enough of your letters, Scott!"

"I'm sorry. Tell her I'm sorry. Just take care of them. They deserve so much more than me."

At least they both agreed on that point.

Scott rushed passed him shoving the envelope into his hand before he could even respond. Of all the way he thought today would end up, he would've never thought he'd have to give his girlfriend another 'Dear John' letter from her ex.

This belonged in a soap opera. Not in real life and especially not when it involved toying with the heart of the little four-year old that he had grown to love.

Liam needed a stable father.

For good.

* * *

Twenty minutes late.

Rick was going to hate her for having to sit with Scott for this long. She'd be '_owing'_ him a lot later she thought as she bit down on her lip to hold in her smile. Though owing Rick was never a bad thing. Her heart fluttered with the implication of what her night would be after she survived dinner.

At least she had something to look forward to.

Walking up to the restaurant, she pulled Liam into her arms and held him close as she prepared to face what she still feared was a bad idea.

"Ready for pizza?" she murmured into her son's ear.

"Yes! With extra garlic bread?" he asked, his tiny voice filled with innocence and joy.

"Have we ever _not_ let you have extra?"

"Not since Rick has been around," Liam giggled, nuzzling against her shoulder. She laughed a little at the boy's antics and moved inside.

Now or never.

Liam wiggled out of her arms, but she managed to keep him close considering the fact there were people everywhere. The waiting area had a couple families waiting to be seated as she searched the crowded dining area.

That was when she saw him.

Rick sat alone, fumbling with an envelope in his hands. The fluttering in her chest stuttered to a stop and her expression fell. It was written all over his face and she knew.

Scott was gone.

The gut feeling she'd had this entire time was right.

"There's Rick, Mommy!" Liam shouted over the noise, pulling at her hand. His little voice was filled with such excitement for seeing the man she loved sitting there waiting for them.

She could always depend on him - one of the many reason she loved him.

While her heart broke over the fact that Scott had left him again, watching her son run off to join Rick; a small smile formed across her face. She had thought Liam was going to have dinner with his father tonight.

Maybe he was.

* * *

Dinner ended up better than she expected. The initial pang of sadness she felt was soon forgotten. They ate and laughed with Liam, oblivious to the missing dinner guest.

She hadn't bothered to read the letter yet and honestly she didn't know if she would even do so. Nothing he could say at this point would change the fact that he had been so close to being in his son's life and he had thrown it all away again. Kate was all for second chances because to err was human, but third chances? No, not when it came to toying with her son.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Rick asked, joining her on the couch. She shook her head with a slight upturn to her lips.

"Not today. I don't even want to read what he has to say at this point. Maybe one day. Probably not…"

"I'm sorry, Kate," he whispered against her temple, wrapping his arm around her shoulder.

"You of all people… Rick, you have nothing to apologize for."

"Liam deserves to have a better father than that. I can't believe that after knowing how wonderful he is, that Scott would still—" She lightly kissed his cheek and shook her head again. "You didn't want to talk about it…"

"No, but I will say this. I always wondered, but now I know. He was never meant to be in Liam's life," she said, her body relaxing as she sank further into his arms.

"You've down a remarkable job of raising him, Kate. He's a great kid."

"Thank you. It means a lot coming from you. You've done a great job with Alexis."

"Still can't take the credit with her," Rick said, chuckling.

"I don't think you give yourself enough credit. You're an amazing man." Kate turned to look up at him with a grin. He was amazing and she was fortunate to have him around.

"Mommy?"

The couple jumped at the sound of Liam's voice from behind the couch. He had a habit of sneaking up on them lately. She was starting to get concerned that he might catch them doing something a little more strenuous than cuddling.

It might be a good idea to start using the lock on the bedroom door.

"Buddy, is the cartoon over?" she asked, standing up to look at the boy.

"Uh huh," he said with a grin.

"Alright. We should get you to bed."

She startled as she felt Rick brush up behind her and whisper against her skin. "Stay."

"Okay," she turned back to press a light kiss onto his mouth. "Want to help me tuck him in?"

"Of course."

"Liam, we'll stay here tonight. Can you go get into your pajamas and we'll meet you upstairs?"

He gave her a quick nod and ran up the stairs giggling the entire time.

"This place feels better when you are here," Rick said as he slid his hands around her waist and pulled her back flush against him.

"It seems like we're staying here more and more again."

"You are, and I love every minute of it," he mumbled against her skin, trailing kisses long her jaw line. Spinning in his arms, she leaned up to peck his lips.

"Mmhmm. Let's go put my kid to bed and then we can continue this afterward," she husked before kissing him again and turning to walk upstairs.

* * *

Standing in the doorway, they watched as Liam raced around his room with his Hot Wheel cars.

"He's so cute when he plays," Kate said, in awe of her little boy. Always the loving mom, her devotion to her son was one of the things that he loved the most about her.

Then again, there wasn't anything he didn't love about this woman. He looked at her and before long he realized it, he verged in on staring territory.

"Everything okay?" She quirked her eyebrow and he answered with a smile.

"Of course, but can I have a second with him, Kate?"

She eyed him for a minute. A case of being too smart for her own good and she could definitely tell something was going on. Even though she was skeptical, she didn't push the issue.

"Mmhmm," she hummed, walking downstairs to give them some privacy.

"Rick?" Liam called to him, pushing his cars along the window sill.

"Did you have fun tonight, Buddy?" He smiled at Liam as he moved toward the raceway.

"Yes! I love that pizza!"

"We know," he said, laughing. "That's why we took you to your favorite place."

"Thank you," Liam beamed.

Rick paused for a second. Who would've thought that he'd ever have trouble talking to Liam? This wasn't a normal conversation. This was important. This was different. Liam's opinion of him mattered more than anything.

"You know how much I love your mom, right?"

"Yes. You guys kiss _a lot_!" he giggled.

"We do. Sorry about that, but I don't think that will stop." Liam stuck out his tongue and covered his face. This was not going the way that he had planned. Trying to redirect the conversation, he took a deep breath and moved closer to Liam. "Do you like that your mom and I spend a lot of time together? Or does that make you upset?"

"It's okay. I like you."

"Would it be okay if we all spent a lot more time together? Like a family?" he asked and then paused. Liam turned to look at him, confusion written all over his expression.

"Aren't we already a family?"

Rick stopped for a second and then pulled Liam into his arms, hugging him tight. The innocence of this child blew him away. It was sad to know how much his biological father was missing out on for being such a coward.

"Yeah, Buddy. I guess we are a family, aren't we? So do you think it would be a good idea for me to marry your mom?"

The boy's head shot up with a huge grin.

"Yes! That's the best idea!" He clung to Rick tighter and kissed his cheek.

"I'm glad you agree."

"So we could live here for real."

"Exactly, you could live here for real. We just have to keep it a secret from your mom until I ask her," Rick said, lowering his voice and putting his pointer finger in front of his lips.

"Deal," he hushed in response.

"So you'll be okay with me kind of being your dad?"

Liam giggled softly before he looked back up at Rick.

"Can I tell you a secret?"

"Sure. You can tell me anything."

"I already pretend you're my daddy," he said, looking down at his feet. Liam pretended he was already his dad. This caused Rick's heart to practically leap from his chest.

"_Really_?"

"Yeah. So now you'll be my daddy for real." Rick pulled the boy back into his arms and held him close.

"Exactly, now I'll be your daddy for real," he whispered against the top of his head, pressing a kiss into his hair.

* * *

_**TBC**_

_Thanks for reading! I would love to hear from you._

_Jo thanks for being super!beta as always!_

_Joanna thanks for your help :)_

_To my constant group of cheerleaders- you guys are awesome and I don't thank you enough._

_Until next chapter..._


	17. Chapter 17

_(Sorry I didn't respond to each of your lovely words individually as of yet! I was too excited to get this chapter to you! I loved every word you wrote and I promise to catch up.)_

_Disclaimer: I do not own Castle or any of its dialogue, but all mistakes are mine._

* * *

**_Medical Attention_**

* * *

_Castle's S1 AU Based on a tumblr prompt from anon: Castle's a doctor, a friend of Lanie's. AU Caskett meeting at Lanie's birthday. *Castle Winter Hiatus 2014 Ficathon Entry*_

* * *

**Chapter 17**

"You're okay with this, right?"

Rick walked around the kitchen counter to sit next to Alexis for breakfast. Kate had to be at the precinct early this morning so they decided it was best for her and Liam to stay at their place instead of having to leave even earlier from the loft.

"Dad, _of course_. I've never seen you happier and I just want you to be happy," she replied, taking a sip from her orange juice.

"It's going to change things."

Alexis rolled her eyes at him and he couldn't help but think of Kate. That reaction was all Kate. Okay, so maybe he was treating her with kid gloves, but she was his little girl. Though in reality, she wasn't little anymore. His daughter was in high school and wise beyond her years. Aside from that, at this point in his relationship with Kate, he would've known if Alexis had a problem with his girlfriend. She wasn't typically the type to keep her opinions to herself about things.

"I'm not the one who's scared of change. That was always you. You know I love Kate. Major improvement compared to any of the others you've dated." Alexis smirked into her toast as he scoffed.

"You make it sound like I brought home flesh eating zombies."

"Maybe not flesh eating, but that one model you brought around here was pretty zombie like."

He paused for a second and shivered at the memory.

"Yeah— okay, I'm inclined to agree with that."

"Kate is great, Dad. You're lucky to have found her. Plus, you knew I always wanted a sibling. Now I'll have _one_…" She smiled up at him and kissed his cheek before turning back to her food, her next sentence a mumble. "For now. Until you guys have another kid."

"Hey!" Rick protested, but the idea wasn't exactly unpleasant. It was, however, putting the horse before the cart, so he sidestepped it, saying only, "She needs to say yes first…" He slid the container on the counter for Alexis to see. Opening the signature light blue box, she pulled out the much more discrete black ring box and smiled.

"She'll say yes."

"That's what she told me when we talked about the possibility, but until I see that ring on her finger…"

"The ring is beautiful. She loves you. She'll say yes."

"When did you get so smart?" he asked, standing up to kiss to the top of her head before putting the ring away.

"It's all that expensive schooling you pay for…"

"Worth every penny!"

* * *

A couple days later, Kate stared at the murder board from their latest case. A plastic surgeon had been found in his car, killed in an apparent mob hit. Normally it was the type of murder that would pique her interest, but today her mind was miles away.

Last night when she had been in bed, wrapped up in Rick's arms, she had decided that she needed to take things into her own hands. They loved each other and she didn't want to drag her feet any longer. Their relationship had grown even stronger in the weeks since Scott walked out of their life for good. Every day things felt more natural, more right. There hadn't been any sign of anything faltering.

She wanted to marry Rick. He had said he wanted her in his future and now it was time for him to put his money where his mouth was. She decided she was going to ask him, plan an evening together and just lay it all out, she didn't need to wait for him to ask.

It was 2009. She was a modern, independent woman. This wasn't a fairy tale. She could ask him and there wasn't any shame in that.

So now murder was the furthest thing on her mind because they had a date tonight.

Tonight she was going propose to him.

"What do you think?" Esposito asked.

Shit. He was talking about the case wasn't he? She'd completely zoned out.

"Um. That's a good idea," she mumbled, placing her hand in front of her mouth to cover her hesitant expression.

"Good idea? Seriously, Beckett?" Ryan teased, walking toward the pair at the white board.

"Sorry. I didn't get a lot of sleep last night."

Esposito laughed and quirked his eyebrow at her statement.

"I don't even _want_ to know what you and Doctor Boy were doing," he said as Ryan joined in with a chuckle. They could never pass up the opportunity to tease her.

"Good, because I wasn't going to tell you. Now back to the case. If only we could get the Feds to let us talk to their witness."

"Didn't you have an old boyfriend that could help?" Ryan asked and she couldn't tell if he was asking to be serious or to continue ragging on her sleepless state. He seemed genuine with his expression but that didn't mean she would ever consider calling in a favor to Will. The phrase when pigs fly…

"Yeah, that's not going to happen. Maybe Montgomery could call in a favor…"

Her words were cut off by the sound of her phone ringing. Mild panic fluttered in her stomach when she noticed that the number on the screen was Liam's preschool.

"Hello?"

"Hello? Ms. Beckett?"

"This is Kate. Is everything okay?"

"Ms. Beckett, I don't want to alarm you, but there's been an accident on the playground. Liam will need to be picked up and you'll want to take him to be checked out."

"Accident? Is it serious? What happened?" she asked, her voice growing frantic with each word. She mouthed her apology to her partner, barely muttering a goodbye to the boys, as she reached for her bag and rushed toward the elevator.

"He was hanging on the equipment and slipped. We have some ice on it but we would suggest taking him to the ER."

"I'm on my way there."

She hung up with the school and jogged to her car. Her mind was trying to keep calm as she weaved through traffic. It wasn't life or death but her little boy was hurt and she wasn't there with him. He'd come close to getting hurt on a couple other occasions since he had learned to walk. Liam had basically learned to climb before he had started walking. She had always joked that he was part monkey. Yet with all his daredevil antics, he had never seriously injured himself.

Apparently until today…

* * *

Kate reached for her phone while waiting at a light. Even though she knew Rick would be with patients at this hour, she wanted to let him know what was going on. The least she could do was leave him a short voicemail.

'Rick, Liam fell at school. I'm going to run him to the ER. Please, call me when you can.'

Hopefully by the time he even checked his messages, they'd be on their way home and everything would be fine. She tried to repeat optimistic thoughts, but who was she kidding? Pessimism was her nature. Groaning at the slow movement on the road, she nearly switched on her portable siren during a couple points of the trip before she pulled up to his school, but was able to resist since the school was within a comfortable walking distance. The hospital however was further across town so she may actually flash the switch depending on how hurt he was.

Running up to his classroom, Kate found Liam whimpering in the corner with one of the teacher's aides. His arm was hanging limp at his side as the woman was holding an ice pack on him.

"Mommy!" he said, wiping away his stray tears with his other hand.

"Hey, sweetheart," she said, bending down to lift her son into her arms before turning to the teacher. "Thank you for calling me."

"Of course, please let us know if there is anything else we can do."

"I will. Thank you." She gave the woman a small smile before kissing Liam's cheek to calm his tears as they walked out of the classroom. "Baby, let's get you to the doctor so they can check your arm."

"What about Rick?"

"He's at work, but I let him know that I was taking you to get looked at. He'll check in on you as soon as he can," she explained.

"Okay," he sniffled into her shoulder. She knew that wasn't the answer that he wanted as his posture slumped against her body. Over the last couple weeks, any small bump or scrape that the boy incurred, he had wanted Rick there.

The bond that the two men in her life had formed meant the world to her. If at all possible, each time she watched Rick and Liam together, she fell in love with her boyfriend a little more. Maybe her idea for proposing wouldn't work tonight, but she couldn't put off her future much longer.

* * *

Kissing Liam on the top of his head, she unloaded him from his booster seat, trying to position him in her arms in a way that wouldn't irritate his injury any further. However each time she accidentally touched that arm, he cried out in pain and her heart broke in two.

Luckily the midday rush outside the building didn't spill into the ER waiting room, so they were able to get Liam into an exam room without much delay. Once inside and seated on the hospital bed, he looked around the room and burst into tears.

"Mommy, I'm scared. I don't want a shot."

"Sweetheart," she said, sitting down next to her son and pulling him into her arms. "It's okay. No one said anything about a shot. They're just going to look at your arm and see what's wrong with it. They just want to help."

He looked up at her with tears clouding his vision. "Promise no shot?"

"I promise no shot." She bit her tongue to prevent any further promises from spilling from her mouth. At this point, she'd offer to buy him a puppy to ease any additional tears.

"Okay…" he whimpered and buried his head against her chest. She had heard her phone buzz when she was filling out the paperwork in the waiting area, but forgot about it until now. Finally having a second to check it, she smiled when she saw the message was from Rick.

'_Is he okay? Should I meet you?'_

'_Waiting to see the doctor. I think he'll be okay. Love you.'_

She threw her phone back in her bag before he responded; he'd sent the first message over twenty minutes ago and was probably with another patient by now. If only he was making rounds at the hospital, but today was his office day, so they had to make the best of the situation.

Today his patients needed him to take care of them.

"Can you move your arm at all, Buddy?"

"A little, but it hurts _really_ bad!" he said, tears streaming down his face again as the doctor walked through the door.

"So I hear you fell at school?" the pediatrician asked with a gentle smile. Liam squirmed up her body, hiding from the doctor and clawing the back of her neck with his good arm. He was usually pretty calm with doctors and dentists. She knew he was in pain but this wasn't a reaction she'd expect from him.

"I want Daddy, Mommy. I want Daddy."

An unexpected shiver ran down her spine and butterflies invaded her stomach. He'd never…

"Daddy?"

"Yes, I want Daddy here. Daddy should be here…"

She understood he was scared. Liam had never seriously injured himself before, yet his reaction to the doctor entering the room had entirely thrown her.

"Baby, I'm here. Just let the doctor…" Kate said, trying to soothe her son by lightly rubbing his back.

"No, I want Daddy to look at it…"

He was asking for Rick.

* * *

As soon as he could get to the hospital, Rick walked up to the nurse's station to find out what exam room they had Liam in. By the time he noticed that Kate had responded to his text message, he had already worked out the rest of his afternoon schedule to be covered by the other doctors in the practice. He didn't know all the details on what happened but he couldn't focus on things with his own patients when he knew that Liam was hurt.

"Dr. Rodgers?" The nurse behind the desk looked at him in confusion. He wasn't due back to the hospital until Friday.

"There's a little boy that was brought in. Liam Beckett. What room is he in?"

"He's your patient?"

"No." He cleared his throat and just went for it. "I'm his family." Not exactly the truth, but not exactly a lie either.

"Family?"

"Please, just what room?"

"Exam room 6."

"Okay, thanks Mary Anne."

Jogging down the hall, he was outside of room six when he heard Liam yelling.

"No, I want Daddy to look at it…"

Was he asking for him? He had never called him Daddy out loud before, but after that night a couple weeks ago he knew that Liam considered him that.

It had to be.

Liam was asking for him. Love and awe warmed his chest as he cracked open the door to the exam room. All attention was on him as he stood in the doorway but his focus narrowed on Liam wiping away the tears from his face as Kate's face broke out into a smile.

"Daddy. You're here!"

His movements were hesitant at best. True, Kate appeared to be smiling at the fact that he had showed up at the hospital for them, but the fact that Liam was calling for him? Calling him Dad? He didn't want this to step on her toes. He put a pin on the issue until they could talk about it later tonight.

Now he needed to make sure Liam was okay.

"Dr. Rodgers? I didn't realize you had a son."

"It's a new development," Kate said, meeting his eyes as she spoke. Her voice was soft and reassuring.

"Buddy, if I sit down next to you. Will you let my friend Dr. Collins look at your arm?"

"I want you to look at it."

"How about we let Dr. Collins look at it first and then I can?"

It wasn't the time to explain the Hippocratic Oath to the four year old, so if they had to work around with a bit of theatrics, they would. Whatever they had to do to take care of Liam.

Trying not to jostle the boy, he slide next to him and wrapped his arm around his side finding Kate's hand half way. She laced her fingers through his for a second and squeezed him.

"Thank you," she whispered over Liam's head as the doctor turned to get a fresh pair of medical gloves.

"Always."

There was no place he'd rather be.

* * *

Needless to say their plans for the evening had changed. Liam ended up with a dislocated elbow and severe sprain. While Dr. Collins had fixed his elbow with ease and then wrapped his arm, there was no way that either of them felt right about going out on their date when he was still in pain.

"Not exactly the night I had imagined," she mumbled, leaning against his shoulder. They had finally sat down on the couch after laying Liam down for the night.

"Yeah, this wasn't exactly dinner at Drago." He craned his neck just enough that she felt him place a kiss against her hair.

"Not dinner. I had other—" She was disappointed and her voice hinted at the fact. It just didn't seem like there would ever be the perfect time because it was real life. The stars would never align for that perfect moment that she had pictured in her head when she was a little girl.

"You had? What?" Lifting her head to look up at Rick, she was met with his confused expression.

Kate shook her head and ran her fingertips lightly down the five o'clock shadow on his cheek. "It's not- it doesn't matter tonight," she stuttered. "Thank you for being there for him today. It meant a lot, to him, to both of us really."

"Kate, you know I'll be there whenever he needs me? It's not even a question. I'll be there," he said, pausing. "But the whole calling me Dad thing?"

"That's new…" she finished for him.

"Yeah, he's never done that before. How do you feel about it?" He reached for her hand and traced the ridges of her knuckles before drawing circles against the soft skin. She could tell that he was growing nervous of her reaction.

"How do I feel? I should be asking you that question. Rick…"

"Kate, I look at him like he's my son, but he's not. He's your son so I can't just stake claim on him and call him my son unless you're okay with it," he said, speeding through the words with such passion and concern. Cupping the shells of his ears with her palms, she pulled his mouth down onto hers for a slow soft kiss. When they broke apart, she leaned her forehead against his leaving them only a breaths length apart.

"He's your son, Rick. In every way that matters, he's your son."

He slid both of his hands against her biceps to push her back just enough so he could look into her eyes completely.

"I love you. God, I really wanted to- I planned to," he said, words jumbling in his mouth.

"Planned to what?"

Rick shook his head with a small smile as he pushed her grown out bangs from her face to rest behind her ear.

"This wasn't how I wanted to. I wanted it big. I wanted it to be memorable for you."

"Rick, marry me," she gasped, the words flying out of her mouth without her permission.

"Kate-" he said, beaming.

"Um, typically people answer proposals, Rick," she teased, holding back her grin. "I know it's a little unconventional, but—"

"What does this say?" He moved from the couch over to his coat and pull out the small Tiffany's box from the pocket.

"You had a ring?" She giggled as she watched the man that she loved open the box to reveal a gorgeous princess cut platinum ring.

"Yes, I had a ring. I was going to propose tonight at dinner."

"We both planned on proposing on the same night?"

"What are the odds?" he whispered the question as they both stood their stunned in the moment staring into each others' eyes. He slowly kneeled down in front of her as the smile on his face stretched further than she'd ever seen.

"You never answered my question, Rick," she smirked, gnawing on her bottom lips her nervous energy pooled in her stomach as she looked down at the ring in his hand.

"Yes, Kate. Yes I'll marry you." He grinned up at her as she leaned down for a slow heated kiss. She tried to pull him up to her but he shook his head and held up the ring again. "_My turn_. I've loved you for far longer than I allowed myself to realize and I want to spend every day waking up to make you happier than the day before. You deserve the world and I plan to work the rest of my life to give it to you. Kate Beckett, I love you more than I ever thought possible. Will you marry me?"

A giddy laugh erupted from her throat as she pulled him back up to her mouth. She needed him and the mere inches between them were too much. All she craved in this moment was the hard press of his body on top of hers.

"There's nothing I'd rather do," she gasped into his ear as he slid the ring on her finger and carried her toward his room.

They made it through the doorway as he slammed her body against the door, never easing the assault on her lips. Her eyes flickered open only long enough to focus on the sparkle from the rock on her finger.

She was marrying him.

Maybe there was something to be said about fairy tales after all.

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_**tbc (Epilogue to follow)**_

_Thanks so much for reading! I'd love to hear from you!_

_._

_Jo- thanks for being such an awesome beta and friend!_

_Joanna and all my other constant cheerleaders- thank you for the constant support!_


	18. Epilogue

_A/N- at end_

_Disclaimer: I do not own Castle or any of its dialogue, but all mistakes are mine._

* * *

**_Medical Attention_**

* * *

Castle's S1 AU Based on a tumblr prompt from anon: Castle's a doctor, a friend of Lanie's. AU Caskett meeting at Lanie's birthday. *Castle Winter Hiatus 2014 Ficathon Entry*

* * *

**Epilogue**

"Are you sure about this, Wife?" Rick asked, feathering kisses along Kate's clavicle.

"I should be asking you that, Husband…" She giggled before turning on her side and propping herself up with her elbow.

"First of all, that's Dr. Husband…"

"Oh God."

"No, not God. Dr. Husband…" She couldn't contain her laughter as her eyes rolled back at his bad joke. "Anyway…if I wasn't sure, I wouldn't have suggested it." His voice grew serious as he brushed the hair from her face. Kate leaned forward and kissed his cheek.

"This is a big step. Thank you."

"Why are you thanking me? I should be thanking you. You've given me and Alexis this amazing growing family," he said, running his knuckles against her still flat abdomen.

"I love you," she murmured, feeling her heart speed up and flush her skin.

"I love you, too."

"I'm glad we're waiting to tell everyone. I just really didn't want our news to outshine today. Today…"

"Needs to stand on its own."

"Exactly."

The instinct, when they found out about their expanding family a couple days ago, to tell Liam and Alexis right away was strong. Hell, she wanted to tell almost anyone they encountered since finding out, but they wanted today to be special. So they had decided it was for the best to wait until next week to share the pregnancy news.

Kate rolled over and reached for her cell phone from the nightstand as her alarm started to blare. "Let's go get the kids. You get mine and I'll get yours?"

"That's the last time you get to say that," he reminded her with a whisper.

"I know," she said, beaming back at him.

* * *

Signing the last document, Rick slid the page back to their attorney and squeezed Kate's hand. Their lawyer shook both of their hands and walked the documents to the judge to finish with the formalities; formalities were all that was left to the process.

Following the wedding, they had decided that it only made sense for Rick to officially adopt Liam. Kate had a dangerous job and she wanted to ensure that everything was in place to protect her son if something were to ever happen. Also, they'd be father and son in every sense of the word, not just because they were married. Liam's dream of being a family had really come true. From that point on, they had initiated the process of Rick legally adopting Liam and today the journey was finally complete.

Judge Harrison had been a personal friend of Rick's for years now, so it was even more fitting that it was his final signature on the adoption petition. He moved from behind his bench to congratulate the family before dismissing them from the court.

It was official.

It was real.

"Liam Rodgers," Kate said, smiling.

"It has a nice ring to it," he agreed, pulling the boy into his arms.

"Alexis, now we all have the same last name," Liam said, giving his sister a high five.

"Exactly. Now we all have the same name," she assured him, giving Kate a half hug from her side.

Alexis had a mom in Meredith no matter how flighty she could be; she still cared about her daughter. Even though they'd never have a mother daughter bond, Kate and Alexis had formed a nice relationship as friends and confidants. It was special in their own way and since the wedding they had become even closer.

"Yep, the Rodgers family."

"And Grams too," Liam added.

"If only we could get her to move out of the loft," he joked, as Kate glared at him.

"Be nice," she stated, reaching for his free hand as they headed out of the courthouse together.

Their life was nearly perfect together and with the new miracle growing in Kate, things were beyond amazing. They were blessed in every way imaginable.

* * *

Walking through the door at their loft, they were all greeted by a small gathering of their family and friends. Everyone stood there with smiles on their faces, rushing to the door to congratulate the entire Rodgers family.

Love and joy were felt through every inch of the space.

"Daddy?" Liam whispered once their guests moved further into the room toward the food and drinks.

"Yeah, Buddy?"

"Why is everyone here? Do I get presents?" he asked as his eyes shined with excitement.

"Everyone is here because they wanted to show you how much they love you. But no, you don't get presents. It's not your birthday…" Kate explained but she noticed Rick shifting at her side.

"Well…"

"Rick, what did you do?"

"I got my son a present," he defended.

"You mean our son."

"He is _ours_, isn't he?" His grin stretched across his face and the joy in his expression was heard in every syllable he spoke.

"Yes, he's ours all right," Kate answered with a smile. "So…what did you _do_?"

"Well, maybe the timing isn't _perfect_ but I planned it before… you know…" he whispered, glancing down at her stomach.

"Rick…" Her tone warning, like she already knew she wouldn't like what was about to happen.

"Liam, I'll be right back…"

The party goers started to notice the family discussed in the foyer and they turned to see the commotion as Rick rushed toward their room to bring out the gift.

"Rick…" Her eyes widened at the sight of the surprise. She was going to _kill _him.

"Daddy! You got me a puppy!" he screamed as Rick placed the tiny fuzzy animal into his arms.

"Oh my god! Dad, we got a dog!" Alexis squealed, rushing toward Liam and the dog.

"_Rick!_ You got the kids a dog!"

"Mommy! I always wanted a puppy!"

"Kate, he always wanted a puppy," he responded with the same puppy dog look that Liam typically used.

"Can we call him Chewbarka! Or Chewy for short?" Liam suggested, laughing as the dog licked his face.

"When did I lose control of my life?" Kate asked, rolling her eyes.

"The day I introduced you to Rick," Lanie called over to her.

"So I can blame you for this?"

"Or you could thank me…" she shot back.

"I think we should thank her," Rick whispered against her temple, wrapping his arms around her waist. The hug was part apology for the animal surprise, but mostly it was happiness from the day. He could rarely keep his hands away from her as it was.

"We could, but it might go to her head." She leaned closer into Rick's body to pull him into a quick kiss as she heard her friend scoffing in the background.

Lanie was right though. She could've never imagined that simply putting on some lipstick and meeting at a bar for her friend's birthday would've changed her life forever.

Yet it had.

All because she fell in love with the doctor.

* * *

_**The End.**_

_A couple thank yous and then an announcement_

_THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU FOR READING AND EMBRACING IT AND BEING SO SUPPORTIVE OF IT! Honestly I'm blown away by the reviews and tweets and messages. I never thought I'd write a story that people would actually want to read. So thank you for being so kind!_

_To my wonderful beta Jo- you honestly are such a great friend and my story would be a huge disaster without you. Thanks for your constant help!_

_To Joanna who has been such a great friend throughout all my writing and for encouraging me to write in the first place!_

_._

_**And the announcement...So I kind of fell in love with writing this story and this family so as I finished writing MA I decided that I'm not leaving this universe behind. This will now be a series. There will be at least one multi-chapter sequel. 'Family Practice' will be in the works soon as well as a couple various one-shots that will cover various stages that were skipped either pre-MA, between chapters or post-MA. Not sure how many nor can I promise more than one additional multi-chapter, but I hope it'll be as fun for the readers as it'll be to write. I'll mention MA in the title so you it's in the series.**_

_Sorry for the massive note! Until next time! _


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